A blockbuster London derby takes centre stage this evening as Tottenham Hotspur host Chelsea.
The Blues have only won two of their last seven matches in the Premier League as injuries to several key players, including Christopher Nkunku and Ben Chilwill, have curtailed their early season hopes.
Tottenham, meanwhile, have been in imperious form since the arrival of Ange Postecoglu and remain the only side in the division to have their unbeaten record intact.
Postecoglu's unstoppable duo of Heung-min Son and James Maddison will be looking to cause further damage this evening by adding to their 17 goal contributions between them in the league.
They face a Chelsea defence that is only behind Manchester City, Arsenal and Newcastle United for expected goals against (xGA), as per Understat.
One man who has featured heavily in Mauricio Pochettino's backline this term is centre-back Axel Disasi.
Axel Disasi's season in numbers
Disasi arrived for £38.8m from Monaco in the summer and has since established himself in the Argentine's plans, featuring in nine of their ten Premier League fixtures.
The 25-year-old has impressed with his ability to carry the ball out of defence and make killer passes through the thirds, complementing his 50% dribble success rate with a 92% pass completion, as per Sofascore.
With Pochettino deploying a possession-based style that requires patience in their pursuit to exploit gaps, Disasi's elegance and ability on the ball have played a vital role in the Blues build-up phase.
In their match against Tottenham this evening, however, Chelsea will likely have to surrender possession and set-up to hit Spurs on the counter-attack.
Given the threat posed by the hosts through the devastating Son and Maddison, the Frenchman will need to be on the ball defensively.
Unfortunately, the £80k per-week titan hasn't performed particularly well in a defensive capacity, ranking in the bottom 8% against his positional peers in the Premier League this term for interceptions, bottom 10% for blocks and bottom 1% for tackles, as per FBref.
That said, Pochettino could ruthlessly ditch Disasi for his former Monaco teammate, Benoit Badiashile, this evening.
Benoit Badiashile's Chelsea career in numbers
Badiashile capped his return from injury in style with a goal against Blackburn Rovers that sealed Chelsea's place in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals.
It was a goal that meant everything, not just for the Blues, but for a player who had suffered an injury-ravaged spell and had been forced to watch on from the sidelines since May.
Benoit Badiashile 22/23
Stats per 90
Axel Disasi 23/24
1.39
Tackles
0.57
1.59
Interceptions
0.46
0.99
Tackles (Def 3rd)
0.23
3.48
Aerials won
2.52
0.90
Fouls committed
0.57
7.56
Ball recoveries
5.50
3.38
Clearances
2.75
All stats via FBref.
Lauded as a "complete defender" by his former Monaco coach Nelson Caldeira for his ice-cold temperament, ability with the ball at his feet and exceptional tackling ability, the 22-year-old has combined those three attributes to leave a lasting impression at Chelsea.
Whilst his ball-playing abilities are a vital cog in Pochettino's machine, they will be compromised against Tottenham with the likelihood that the visitors will need to do a lot of defending, and that is where Badiashile's freak physical attributes could come into play.
The two-cap France international showcased with his performances last term that he has the edge over Disasi in a defensive capacity when comparing their respective statistics in the Premier League (table above).
With the likes of Son and Maddison terrorising their back line, Chelsea will need to be organised at the back and by taking the above statistics into account, 6 foot 4 Badiashile has demonstrated that he's the better all-round defender than Disasi and could be the better option to combat the hosts attacking prowess.