Category: Arsenal previews

Facts you need to know before the North London derby

Mikel Arteta takes his young Arsenal team to the Totten*am Hotspur Stadium on Thursday evening knowing that a win would guarantee their ticket to the Champions League.

With just three games to play for, the Gunners find themselves four points clear of their arch-rivals. Even if they lose, they will still have the destiny of finishing in the Champions League spot in their own hands.

🚨 MATCHDAY!

🆚 Tottenham
🏆 Premier League
🕗 7.45pm (UK)
🏟 Tottenham Hotspur Stadium#TOTARS pic.twitter.com/ArXsWD6MUz

— Arsenal (@Arsenal) May 12, 2022

But losing against Antonio Conte’s men won’t be in the minds of the club’s faithful. Majority of them must be looking forward to slicing their throats in their own garden.

Here are some facts that are worth knowing ahead of the blockbuster clash:

• Antonio Conte has won just one of his eight meetings with Arsenal in all competitions (Drawn 4, Lost 3).
• Spu*s have won just one of their past four league matches (Drawn 2, Lost 1)
• Arsenal can complete a first league double over their North London rivals since the 2013/14 campaign.
• A win will secure our highest position in the Premier League since 2015/16, when we finished second.

https://twitter.com/octavian10i/status/1524471636006772739

• Totten*am are unbeaten in their last seven home games against the Gunners (Won 5, Drawn 2)

Talking about current form, Mikel Arteta’s men find themselves positioned slightly better, as they have claimed 12 points from the last 16. Totten*am’s points tally from the last 16 stands at 11.

Arsenal have won the league at Spu*s’ old stadium twice, first in 1971 and then again in their Invincible season in 2004.

Maybe it’s time to win a Champions League ticket in 2022. COYG!

Hello Gooners. How do you do?

The good news I heard today is that Mustafi and Soares are back in training. I am so excited about this news because it means we can now concentrate on building our defence for now and for the future. With five fit central defenders, we can now enjoy the luxury of choosing our most inform players. Mustafi most especially, is why I am so happy. He has been playing so well in recent games and I feared a lengthy lay off caused by injury, may derail his good form.

A team without a good defence is not a team. Such a team will concede cheap goals and lose vital points. Great teams of yore succeeded with the help of a solid defence line. At Arsenal, we have been struggling with our defence for a while now; but with Arteta’s arrival, the team is starting to play like a good defensive unit, which is such a good thing. However with the availability of five fit central defenders, Arteta can have the right players to call to play defence. No more using midfielders as defenders, as he would have more than enough players to choose from. If Arteta can bring out the best in all the defenders at his disposal this season, we may not be in desperate need of defensive reinforcement next summer.

Arteta’s obvious choice against West Ham will be Mustafi pairing Luiz at the back but in case he may wish to tinker with his choice of players and try other players, he would have Mari, Sokratis and Holdings to choose from. Any of these players can do a good job if called upon because they are good defenders who just need the motivation to play with all hearts. Who can remember how Holdings was our most inform defender sometime last season? If he was that good then, he can still be good again; all he needs is regular play time and self believe. His long injury lay off may affect his game as expected, but with regular playing time and adequate and healthy training, he will be back. If the manager feels Mustafi is not ready yet to play against the Hammers, he may just decide to make use of Holdings or even Pablo Mari.

From all indications, our players are starting to come back from injuries and with their presence, the team can be competitive again and push themselves to succeed. We are Arsenal and we are proud.

Sylvester Kwentua

Another 3 points today will be good by Lagos Gooner

Hello Arsenal family. Today is another match day and we are looking forward to another Premiership victory against Crystal Palace, to further aid our movement up the table. So, here we are as Arsenal fans, waiting patiently for another 3 points. I smell confidence in the air.

Last season we played Crystal Palace in the Premier league twice, drawing one and losing one at home. Crystal Palace in the last two or more seasons ago, have been difficult opponents for big clubs to beat. Last season, they beat Manchester City at the Etihad and beat Arsenal at the Emirates to confirm their Premiership survival. This season, Arsenal played them in October and drew 2-2 to them. We have found it not easy playing Crystal Palace recently, and when we consider how poor we have been away, it won’t be out of place to nurse negative thoughts in your mind.

However, there is one thing I have learnt in football, and that is never to predict the scores of a game based on previous games. Football is dynamic; things change rapidly in football and a defeat against a team today does not mean another victory for the team tomorrow. Yes we are going to be playing them away, but who says we can’t beat them in front of their fans? We have beaten them in the past in front of their own fans, and it won’t be new if we do so again. What we need at this time is to be positive and play them like we are out to devour them.

They have big, physical players who can trouble any defence at will, but then we always have big players who can also be physical if properly motivated too. The players need to realize that Arsenal has lost a lot and need to start recovering lost points and move us further up the league table. During Emery’s time at Arsenal, we played so poorly anytime we played away and as expected, many fans lost the believe in the team to win a game away from the Emirates. However, with the renewed spirit and passion in the team right now, there is nothing stopping us from acquiring the full three points against Crystal Palace. We are Arsenal and we are proud.

Sylvester Kwentua

It is with great worry I write this; I am worried because a lots of Arsenal fans around me are scared that we may be paired against Ajax or Inter-Milan in the forthcoming rounds of the Europa League. They feel we don’t stand a chance against any of these teams in Europe.

Now, I have a question to ask; do we think these teams are also not scared of playing us? Do we think they will feel like we are a bonus to them? A team like Ajax may have young and exciting footballers but then we also have young and exciting players, in addition to world class strikers. A team with players like Aubameyang, Pepe, Lacazette and Martinelli, should strike fear into the hearts of any football team. Now, why should we be scared of playing them, when they should be the one scared of playing us?

I keep telling people that Arsenal has no business playing in the Europa league, but since we find ourselves playing there right now, then we should be the number one team in that competition. Our last two seasons in this competition has been two seasons of constant progress; we got to the semi finals in our first outing, got to the final in our second outing. This season, we should be aiming to lift the trophy and get done with playing in this competition for good.

I remember how people got scared when we were to play Napoli and Valencia last season. We all know how those games ended; we won against those teams like they were nothing. Yes, we are Arsenal and we play and win the interesting way. Should we be scared of meeting Ajax at any time? No! Should we be scared of meeting Inter-Milan? No! Then who should we be scared of playing against? Nobody!

I still can’t explain how we lost so woefully to Chelsea in the final of the Europa last season. We had no business losing to Chelsea, we needed that game more than them; they had already qualified for the Champions league by virtue of their league position while we had not. We lost the opportunity to announce ourselves as big boys in Europe then, this season should be different. This season we are going for the trophy and no team is stopping us. We are Arsenal and we are proud!

The new football season is well underway, so there is no better time to give your betting bank a boost! Whether that’s through a free bet from your favourite bookmaker or by taking advantage of a bunch of no deposit free spins from a new casino licensed by the UKGC (UK Gambling Commission). The recent seismic shift in the online betting industry brought about by increased regulations, and anti-money laundering measures from the UK Gambling Commission has seen a wave of new online casinos coming to market with a sports betting platform attached.

Allowing you to sign up and claim no deposit free spins on the latest slot machines for your troubles, all you have to do is complete the wagering requirements, and you can use any winnings as a free bet to back your favourite team in the big match! With a busy Christmas schedule and an action-packed Boxing Day football card in the pipelines, it’s worth putting the leg work in now! With Arsenal going through a slump and Unai Emery’s sacking, the odds on an Arsenal revival over the Christmas period are mighty tempting! It may even be worth backing Arsenal to win the Europa League!

September could be an informative month for Arsenal as they aim to prove they are genuine challengers for this season’s Premier League title.

The Gunners started the campaign with victories over Newcastle United and Burnley to spark talk that they can get themselves into the mix this term.

The latest football betting odds have Arsenal hovering around the 33/1 mark to claim the trophy, but a strong run of results in September would see that price come tumbling down.

Arsenal kick-off the month with a potential blockbuster as they go head-to-head with Tottenham Hotspur at the Emirates Stadium.

Spurs have started the new campaign impressively, winning 3-1 at home to Aston Villa before picking up a 2-2 draw at Manchester City.

However, their recent league record at the Emirates is poor, with Arsenal racking up an eight-game unbeaten run.

Unai Emery’s side were excellent in last season’s corresponding fixture, as goals by Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (2), Alexandre Lacazette and Lucas Torreira sealed a 4-2 victory.

Games between these two sides are rarely dull and Arsenal are fancied to edge what could be another high-scoring encounter.

Arsenal return to action after the international break with a tricky-looking trip to face Watford on September 15.

The Hornets lost their first two games of the season against Brighton & Hove Albion and Everton, but they are expected to be a top-half team this season.

Arsenal triumphed 1-0 on their last visit to Vicarage Road back in April and will fancy their chances of picking up another three points from this one.

Newly-promoted Aston Villa are next on the agenda the following Saturday and this should be a banker home victory for the Gunners.

In addition to their defeat at Spurs, the Midlands club have also lost against Bournemouth this term and are struggling to get to grips with the Premier League.

Arsenal have reeled off six wins in a row against Villa in all competitions and are strongly fancied expected to make it seven here.

The North London outfit complete their September schedule with a visit to Old Trafford to face Manchester United on the final day of the month.

The Red Devils have looked much-improved this season, thumping Chelsea 4-0 before recording a 1-1 draw at Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Arsenal took four points off United in 2018/19, but Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side appear to have stepped things up this term and could be a tough nut to crack.

Having started the season with a pair of wins, an 8-10 point return from their September fixtures would represent a decent return for Arsenal and set them up nicely for the rest of the campaign.

I have been doing very well with my predictions in recent weeks, I called the correct score 2-0 in the win over Napoli here and also called it right here when I said Arsenal would win by two goals against the Italians, in fact, I also suggested you back Arsenal at 5/1 to win the Europa League outright as the price would drop after the game and that is exactly what happened.

Now that I have done my boasting and set myself up for a fall, I am going to make three early predictions for the game against Watford, a game we bloody must win.

I know, I know, our away form is crap, but I refuse to believe it will stay that way with every game that we have left to play on the road in the Premier League and I am confident that we will win and collect all three points.

If we play with the same intensity and control that we did against Napoli then all well and good, and a positive result will follow, if we play as we did against Everton then the opposite will happen.

I have confidence in Unai Emery to get the team selection right this time and I fully expect the players to step up to the player and be counted.

Watford will of course, be tough to beat, they are on a high after the win over Wolves, especially following the manner of the victory, but they will be no match for us if we play like what we are truly capable of.

However, I do think it will be tight and that the first half is likely to be a draw and so I am going with a draw at half time and us winning at full-time.

Draw/Arsenal half time full time @ 5/1

My next predictions is on the correct score market and it fits in perfectly with my half-time full-time prediction and that is us winning the game 2-1

Arsenal 2-1 correct score @ 9/1

And my final early prediction is another one that compliments both the correct score and the half-time full-time prediction and that is for both teams to score and for us to win.

Both teams to score and Arsenal win @ 13/5

That is it, for now, I will return with my final two predictions on the day of the match and as usual, these are my opinions only and not recommendations.

Odds sourced from oddschecker