John Terry mused in the week that Chelsea were beginning to feel 'invincible' as they had done under the 'Special One' Jose Mourinho, so can Arsenal halt Blue's precession to the title come Sunday?

Many have asserted that Carlo Ancelotti's men will need to have clear daylight between themselves and the chasing pack come Christmas as they will lose talismanic pair Didier Drogba and Michael Essien to the African Cup of Nations in January.

They will also lose two key squad members and understudies for the aforementioned duo Salomon Kalou and Jon Obi Mikel to the African tournament, so they must certainly look to maintain their current five-point lead.

The result of Sunday's clash with Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium will be a telling marker of their true title credentials, with Arsene Wenger's side themselves looking as if they are not far away from breaking Manchester United's stranglehold.

Ancelotti will be delighted that the fixture comes before Drogba's New Year sabbatical, Chelsea's leading marksman has scored eight goals in his last eight appearances against the Gunners in all competitions.

Guus Hiddink's Blues inflicted Arsenal's worst ever home defeat in the Premier League when they thrashed them 4-1 in May, a result which came off the back of the Gunners disappointing UEFA Champions League semi-final to United.

However, more significant is Arsenal's 2-1 defeat of Phil Scolari's Chelsea at Stamford Bridge almost a year to the day of Sunday's match when Robin Van Persie's quick-fire double triggered the woeful run of results that lead to Scolari's sacking.

Up until that point, Scolari, like Ancelotti, had enjoyed a blissful start to his Chelsea tenure, and the Italian will be desperate fro his side to assert themselves against their title rivals, as they did against United recently.

Terry also pinpointed Chelsea's away form as key in the week as he can have little to say about their form at Stamford Bride - seven wins from seven in the league, two more in Europe, and none conceded since Hull's opening day opener.

And although their defeats by Wigan and Aston Villa appear little more than aberrations, they can ill-afford further defeats, especially with Sir Alex Ferguson's recent comment that he expects United to close the gap before Christmas.

Frank Lampard looks set to return on Sunday, and will be a pivotal component as ever and regardless of the fact that he has scored fewer goals than usual this season, he remains, at 31, a major threat from midfield.

Chelsea will also be delighted to have Ricardo Carvalho partnering Terry in defence as not only do they provide defensive assurance, they are both major threats in the air, against an Arsenal side susceptible to set-pieces.

And despite Drogba taking the plaudits this season, many see Nicolas Anelka as Chelsea's star performer this term, with the Frenchman admitted that winning the title with Chelsea would be sweeter than his 1998 triumph with Arsenal.

The answer to the question we posed at the beginning as to whether the Gunners can stop the Blues' juggernaut would have to be a resounding 'no', but then again, football is a funny old game.