A fourth placed Arsenal side will host 14th placed West Bromwich Albion at the Emirates on a rare Thursday night in the Premier League. Having seen Manchester City falter at Newcastle United, the hosts will have the chance to once again move to the 3rd spot and prove their Champions League qualification credentials.
Whereas for the Baggies, it will be a tough fixture as they have been unable to turn around their recent disappointing form. Here is a look at what you can expect from tonight’s game:
Kickoff and Live Telecast
Channel: Star Sports 1, Star Sports HD1.
Live Stream: www.starsports.com
Date and Time: Thursday, 21 April 2016 – 19:45 GMT ( Friday, 22 April 2016 – 00:15 IST)
Venue: Emirates Stadium, London.
Team News
Arsenal will be very happy when it comes to their injuries as no new casualty has been reported for a few weeks now. However, Arsene Wenger might be regretting playing his number one goalkeeper Petr Cech instead of David Ospina in the last game as the Czech let in a crucial goal.
Danny Welbeck has been struggling to get goals upfront and might be replaced by Olivier Giroud to match the physicality of the Baggies. Another change that might take place is the return of Welshman Aaron Ramsey to the starting XI since he has regained full fitness.
Both Jack Wilshere and Tomas Rosicky have performed well for the Under 21s but will be short for this game, however, Wenger revealed that they might feature in the next game at the weekend. Meanwhile, midfielders Santi Cazorla and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain are still out and are expected to return to first-team training next week.
West Bromwich Albion will visit the Emirates without injured midfielder James Morrison who might not feature again this season due to his hamstring problem. Whereas, another midfielder in Chris Brunt will also be out for the rest of the season after his knee injury.
But manager Tony Pulis has revealed that he might have loanee midfielder Alex Pritchard back for the visit. Apart from the long term injuries, Pulis will have his whole squad available to him but it is unlikely that he will make any changes from the line-up that featured against Watford.
Saido Berahino is also expected to start the game, given that his pace can be utilised on counter-attacks. Salomon Rondon will lead the line for the Baggies in this tough fixture for the visitors.
Probable Lineups
Arsenal (4-2-3-1): Cech; Bellerin, Gabriel, Koscielny, Monreal; Ramsey, Coquelin; Iwobi, Ozil, Sanchez; Giroud.
West Bromwich Albion (4-2-3-1): Foster; Dawson, McAuley, Evans, Chester; Fletcher, Yacob; Sessegnon, Berahino, McClean; Rondon.
Form
Arsenal’s last game against Crystal Palace was the perfect reflection of how their form has been throughout this season. They started the campaign brightly and were at the top of the table at Christmas. But the poor run of form has seen them drop to the fourth place.
They have accumulated just 9 points from their last five league games which have seen them struggle to see off games after taking a lead. They are now 13 points behind league leaders Leicester City but with a game in hand. However, they are just one point behind 3rd placed Manchester City after City played out a 1-1 draw against Newcastle United.
The draw against the Eagles meant that Arsene Wenger's men have now scored 12 goals in their last five league games but notably, the strikers have not been among the goals. Moreover, if Arsenal are to leapfrog City to the third spot then they will need to maintain their form throughout the 90 minutes and not leak goals as they have been doing in their recent games.
Last 5 games: L-W-W-D-D (Last match: Arsenal 1-1 Crystal Palace)
West Bromwich Albion come into this game having lost three of their last five games in the Premier League. Last week’s loss at home to Watford saw Saido Berahino miss two penalties which prolonged their bad run of form in 2016.
Tony Pulis’ men have slipped to the 14th spot in the table. But with a tally of 40 points, they can be assured of a place in the Premier League for next season.
Their last victory came against Manchester United at home at the start of March and since then they have been having a difficult time. But the Baggies have already clinched away points off higher teams like Leicester City, Liverpool, Chelsea and West Ham United.
The visitors have kept two cleansheets in their last five games, and have conceded only 4 goals in the other three games. But their goals have dried up as they have only scored two goals in these five games.
Last 5 games: W-L-D-L-L (Last match: West Bromwich Albion 0-1 Watford)
Key Stats
- 500- It will be Arsenal’s 500th win in the Premier League if they manage to beat West Brom tonight.
- 1- The Baggies have won only one of their last 11 Premier League away games, having lost five and drawn five.
- 9- Arsenal were unbeaten for nine consecutive games against the Baggies when they lost at the Hawthorns earlier this season.
- 7- West Brom manager Tony Pulis has lost all the seven games at the Emirates.
- 12- Olivier Giroud has failed to score in his last 12 Premier League games, his worst ever drought in Arsenal colors.
Key Battle
Laurent Koscielny vs Salomon Rondon
The Frenchman has been in great form at the back for the Gunners throughout the campaign but his form and hardwork has gone in vain as his team has lost the league already. But the Arsenal defender will be on his money when he faces the Venezuelan.
Rondon was brought into the team to give the Baggies that little edge and that extra spark in attack. He has performed well in the past with his former teams, but so far he has not been consistent for his new side.
This battle in the center of Arsenal’s defence will be crucial in deciding if the Gunners can rectify their errors of the previous games. Koscielny’s role in the game will also depend on whether Mertesacker or Gabriel start with him in defence.
If it is the German, then the Frenchman will have to be pacey and provide cover for his partner. But if it is Gabriel, then the defender will have to see that his partner does not let go off of his marker. Whereas for Rondon, it will be a chance for him to prove himself on the big stage against a big team.
Prediction
After being held to a draw in two consecutive games after leading, Arsenal have now dropped into the top-4 battle and a perfomance of extreme determination and passion should be the way to go for Arsene Wenger’s men.
But the Baggies are no mug with the ball, they are very well capable of snatching the points from the Gunners. A tense atmosphere can be expected at the Emirates as the fans were not at all impressed by their team’s performance in the last game.
A hard fought victory for the hosts can be expected as they are under huge pressure to deliver.
Predicted score: Arsenal 2-1 West Bromwich Albion
Betting odds (bet365)
Arsenal – 2/7
Draw – 5/1
West Bromwich Albion – 12/1
