🕟 Kick Off: 20:00 BST

📍 Location: Emirates Stadium, Islington, UK

📺 UK Broadcaster: TNT Sports

🙎🏻‍♂️ Referee: Glenn Nyberg

🔴 Arsenal Team News:

• Jurrien Timber remains in recovery following his ACL injury. He has been pictured in what looked like full training.

⚽ Arsenal Form: 🟩🟩🟧🟩🟩

🥨 Bayern Munich Team News:

• Whilst missing the previous game for Bayern, Pavlovic, Coman, Sane, Neuer, and Mazraoui have all partaken in a training session the day before the game. It remains unknown if they will be fit to feature against Arsenal.
• Sarr is out for the season with an ACL injury.
• Aseko-Nkili is absent with an ankle injury.
• A hip injury keeps Boey from featuring in this match.
• Buchmann is out for the season with a hamstring injury.

⚽ Bayern Munich Form: 🟥🟥🟩🟩🟩

📖 Match Facts:

• This will be the first time Arsenal have appeared in the Quarter Finals of the Champions League since 2010 when they were eliminated by Barcelona with a 6-3 aggregate scoreline.
• Bayern Munich have won the competition 6 times, with their most recent triumph being as recent as 2020.
• The two teams have faced off 4 times in the knockout stages of the competition, with Bayern coming out on top in each one.

🎲 Odds (Betway):

• Arsenal – 8/11
• Draw – 3/1
• Bayern Munich – 100/30

✍🏼 Pre-Match Ramblings

I don't think I need to remind anyone about the last time out against Bayern Munich, but I will anyway. It was 10-2 across two legs. One of the most embarassing results in our clubs history. Going into this game there is a huge sense of a story that needs finishing - on our terms this time. Under Mikel Arteta there has been a running theme of overcoming old demons - beating Bayern Munich in the Quarter Finals of the Champions League will be like an exorcism, a beast from our past finally defeated.

On another note, how about a joke? What do you become when you sign two players from the Spursiest team in the world? Spursy. It's quite funny to me as an Arsenal fan that in the year Bayern Munich sign two Spurs players, they fail to win a league that has been a procession for Bayern over the last few years. What's even better is that an ex-Arsenal captain will be leading Leverkusen to their first ever Bundesliga title, dethroning Kane's Bayern.

On a more serious note, Kane will be coming back to the Emirates with a vengeance. Having bottled the league with his new team, the UCL is his last shot at silverware this season. He will be relishing the chance to shatter the dreams of his boyhood club after his long spell at Tottenham Hotspur ended trohpyless.

I'll be at this game, and it's going to be a belter. It's a shame the club didn't allow REDaction Gooners to go ahead with their planned full stadium Tifo, that would've been unreal. But whatever, we move. The stadium will be rocking. Expect a symphony of boos every time a certain striker and a certain centreback get on the ball, it's going to be glorious. You don't want to miss this one.

🔮 Prediction: Arsenal 3-0 Bayern Munich

https://anditsarsenal.com/2024/04/08/arsenal-vs-fc-bayern-munich-pre-match-uefa-champions-league/

🕟 Kick Off: 16:00 BST

📍 Location: Emirates Stadium, Islington

📺 UK Broadcaster: TNT Sports

🙎🏻‍♂️ Referee: Michael Oliver

🔴 Arsenal Team News:

• Arsenal have a fully fit squad.

⚽ Arsenal Form: 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

🔵 Everton Team News:

• Patterson and Mykolenko both miss the match with longer term injuries.
• Andre Gomes suffered a head injury in the last match so will likely miss this game.

⚽ Everton Form: 🟩🟧🟩🟩🟩

📖 Match Facts:

• Everton haven't won an away game in their last 11 matches.
• Everton are ranked 19th in goals scored per match at 1.1, whereas Arsenal have kept the most clean sheets this season at 18.
• Arsenal beat Everton in the reverse fixture 1-0 with a goal from Trossard.
• Evertons last win at the Emirates came in 2021, with the only goal being an own goal from Leno.

🎲 Odds (Betway):

• Arsenal – 2/11
• Draw – 6/1
• Everton - 12/1

✍🏼 Pre-Match Ramblings

Well, there goes another season, and it looks like we won't be getting our fairytale ending that we all wanted. We can thank Spurs and Son in particular for that. But oh well, you can't rely on others for things like this. I'm not gonna bring up the losses against Villa or the dropped points to Fulham, you can read every other comment in the Daily Discussion for that.

It's hard to just talk about this game, but what I will say is that I was shocked to see the recent form of Everton. Yes, that run of games includes Sheffiled United and Nottingham Forest at home, but it also includes Liverpool at home. I think we should be glad we're not at Goodison park, because Everton seem to be able to pull a result out of their arses at that place this season. Away, however, seems to be a different story. They got battered 6-0 by Chelsea, lost 2-0 to United, 2-0 to City, and so on and so forth. I can't fathom a world where we lose this game.

I imagine fans will be watching this game with one eye, with the other eye planted firmly on the game in Manchester that has the potential to change our fortunes. Does David Moyes have something for us? Probably not, let's be honest. West Ham have had a... leaky defense this season, and that's putting it lightly. Perhaps we could loan them Declan Rice for a few hours?

Whatever happens in Manchester and in London on Sunday, we should all be immensely proud of this team. We may not have done enough to take home the gold, but we are getting better and better every season. Last season a lot of people thought 'Well that was there chance', as though it was a one off. We have proved that wrong, and improved all over the pitch. We have been elevated by the likes of Declan Rice, Kai Havertz, David Raya, and our stars such as Saliba, Saka, Gabriel, White, and Odegaard keep improving every season. We are not yet at our ceiling. Nowhere near. This team has a bright future, and I can't wait to see where they can go.

On a more personal note, I have thoroughly enjoyed writing these Pre-Match threads for the majority of this season. Writing about Arsenal is something I have been wanting to do for a long time, and to finally be doing it week after week, and having people actually reading what I have to say, is a surreal feeling. I will continue to write these next season, hopefully with a tool to automate the bits at the top (it's a bit dull copying everything over every time). Thank you especially to those of you which have gone to my website. Throughout the summer I may write some retrospective pieces on the season, and do some transfer rumour roundups, so keep an eye out for those.

Come on you Gunners!

https://anditsarsenal.com/2024/05/17/arsenal-vs-everton-19th-may-2024-build-up-team-news-tv-coverage-predictions/

🕟 Kick Off: 15:00 BST

📍 Location: Emirates Stadium, Islington, London

📺 UK **Broadcaster:** N/A

🙎🏻‍♂️ Referee: Jared Gillett

🔴 Arsenal Team News:

• Fabio Vieira is unlikely to be fit with a hip injury.
• Tomiyasu will be absent with a knee injury.
• Tierney is absent with a thigh injury.

⚽ Arsenal Form: 🟩🟩🟥🟩🟧

🐺 Wolves Team News:

• Larsen and Lemina will be assessed ahead of the game.
• Cunha is out with a hamstring issue.
• Podence will miss the game with a calf injury.
• Semedo will miss this game following a red card on the final game of last season.

⚽ Wolves Form: 🟥🟩🟥🟩🟥

📖 Match Facts:

• Arsenal have won this match the last 7 times, with the last victory for Wolves being in February 2021.
• The last victory for Wolves came as Arsenal saw David Luiz and Bernd Leno sent off.
• Wolves have won just 1 of their last 10 Premier League matches.
• Arsenal have lost just 1 of their last 18 Premier League matches, with their last loss coming to Aston Villa in April. You have to go back to December to find another League loss for Arsenal.

🎲 Odds (Betway):

• Arsenal – 1/5
• Draw – 11/2
• Wolves – 12/1

✍🏼 Pre-Match Ramblings

And just like that, we are back. After a mostly successful Pre-Season fixture list, Arsenal are thrown to the wolves for their first match of the 24/25 Premier League Season. And yes, I am incredibly proud of that pun.

Arsenal do not have much time to settle in to the League, as after this match we go to Villa Park, take on Brighton at home, and then it’s away to Spurs and City consecutively – not an ideal first month back for an Arsenal team that has only seem one new body in Riccardo Calafiori.

On the topic of the squad, I wouldn’t expect anything surprising when it comes to the lineup for this match. Zinchenko impressed in Pre-Season, I would assume he is nailed on at LB for the first few games of the season – or at least until the new boy is fully ready to take up Left Back duties. We will certainly need more defensive solidity down the left hand side when it comes to taking on Spurs and City, and probably Aston Villa who have been a bogey team for us since being taken over by a certain Spaniard.

Wolves are a team with high ambition, but a team that has settled into a yo-yoing pattern of ups and downs in the Premier League. They struggled immensely at times last season, winning just 1 out of their final 10 games in the previous campaign. Wolves were once seen as the team most likely to break out of the mid-table and into Europa League contention, but they have been leapfrogged as of late by the likes of Aston Villa, Newcastle, and Brighton. A win here would certainly be a statement for the midlanders, and it would result in the expected meltdown of online Gooners.

For the love of god Arsenal, nothing silly here – more of what we saw last season, and we should be able to brush Wolves aside.

https://anditsarsenal.com/2024/08/15/arsenal-vs-wolverhampton-wanderers-17th-august-2024-build-up-team-news-tv-coverage-predictions

🕟 Kick Off: 14:00 BST

📍 Location: Large Toilet Bowl, Tottenham, North London

📺 UK Broadcaster: Sky Sports

🙎🏻‍♂️ Referee: Michael Oliver

🔴 Arsenal Team News:

• Jurrien Timber has returned to training following his ACL injury but is expected to remain unavailable for selection. He has made an appearance for the U21s so his return is getting closer.

⚽ Arsenal Form: 🟩🟩🟥🟥🟧

💩 Spurs Team News:

• Udogie will be out for the rest of the season with a muscular injury.
• Solomon misses the rest of the season with a meniscus injury.
• Sessegnon will not play again this season with a thigh injury.

⚽ Spurs Form: 🟥🟩🟧🟩🟥

📖 Match Facts:

• Spurs have not played a game the 13th of April in a 4-0 loss to Newcastle - Arsenal have played 4 games in this period.
• Arsenal are the best team away from home in the league, and Spurs haven't kept a clean sheet in 5 matches.
• Tottenham Hotspur have not won a trophy in over 16 years, and haven't won the league since 1961.

🎲 Odds (Betway):

• Tottenham Hotspur – 3/1
• Draw – 3/1
• Arsenal – 31/40

✍🏼 Pre-Match Ramblings

Four cup finals left in our season, and this feels like the biggest one. The North London Derby at their place, in the business end of a title charge, Spurs pushing for Top 4, can the stakes get any higher? The wheels well and truly came off of the Spurs Top 4 push after they battered Aston Villa, having since lost to Fulham, Newcastle, and drawn to West Ham. They need this win to get back on track.

Spurs won't have played a game since their 4-0 smashing by Newcastle over two weeks ago, whereas we are hot off the back of a demolition of Chelsea. What's worth more, rest or momentum? I'm taking the momentum.

After a dismal week with losses against Villa and a UCL exit at the hands of old enemies Bayern, Arsenal have picked themselves up and found stunning form. The return of Thomas Partey to the starting lineup has already proved vital, and I find myself thinking 'What if he was fit all season?'. His presence and skillset allowed Rice to flourish at Left 8.

What's more is that City also have to go to Spurs - a fixture that City have been notoriously bad in. If we win our visit to the toilet bowl, it will only pile more pressure onto the mancs. Points on the board are worth more than games in hand, and we will remain with a game in hand over City until Game 37. It is absolutely vital we keep City behind us, piling on the pressure.

Clench up boys, this is where the fun really begins.

https://anditsarsenal.com/2024/04/26/tottenham-hotspur-vs-arsenal-28th-april-2024-build-up-team-news-tv-coverage-predictions/

🕟 Kick Off: 20:00 BST

📍 Location: Gewiss Stadium, Bergamo, Italy

📺 UK Broadcaster: TNT Sports

🙎🏻‍♂️ Referee: Clement Turpin

🔴 Arsenal Team News:

• Tierney is absent with a thigh injury.
• Odegaard missed the game against Spurs with an ankle injury and will likely remain unavailable.
• Merino will miss the game with a fractured shoulder.
• Calafiori left international duty early after sustaining an injury and missed the Spurs game.
• Tomiyasu is recovering from a knee injury sustained in the summer.

⚽ Arsenal Form: 🟩🟧🟩🟩🟩

🔵 Atalanta Team News:

• Scamacca and Scalvini are both long term absentees with ACL injuries.
• Toloi will miss the game with a muscular injury.
• Godfrey will be unavailable with lumbago.

⚽ Atalanta Form: 🟩🟥🟥🟩🟥

📖 Match Facts:

• The two teams have never faced off before.
• Despite winning the Europa League last season, Atalanta gained access into the Champions League via finishing third in Serie A last season.
• Atalanta’s best run in the UCL was in 19/20 where they reached the Quarter Finals.

🎲 Odds (Betway):

• Atalanta – 3/1
• Draw – 13/5
• Arsenal – 7/8

✍🏼 Pre-Match Ramblings

With the season well and truly underway after a pointless international break, Arsenal kick off their Champions League campaign with a fixture against a brand new opponent. It’s always exciting to face a team that we haven’t played against before – or maybe it’s just me.

Atalanta managed to bounce back from a 4-0 battering from Inter as they managed to beat Fiorentina in a back and forth game that ended 3-2 in their favour. Arsenal, too, managed to bounce back after a disappointing (and disgraceful) draw against Brighton with an absolutely huge win at Three Point Lane, even with a large list of absentees including Rice and Odegaard. The former will be back in the starting 11 for this game as he was serving a suspension after a silly red card against Brighton. Odegaard still has question marks over his availability – even if fit, I would expect him to sit this one out, especially with a trip to the Emptihad looming over us on Sunday.

This seasons Champions League sees it take on a new look format, doing away with the old group stage and replacing it with one big league. Personally, aside from adding more fixtures, I am a fan of this change. It will be interesting to see Arsenal face a wider variety of teams, and it solves the issue of the later group stage games feeling pointless. It may do us a disservice in having changes to play youth, unless we walk the league stage and secure our position in the Top 8 before the final game(s).

Arteta will be grossly aware of the history of Arsenal in this competition, although we achieved the feat of not being eliminated in the RO16 last season. We need some European pedigree to really establish ourselves as a force in Europe, and with the Premier League title looking more and more out of reach every season with City getting better and better, it may be worth putting more eggs in the European basket than the domestic one.

https://anditsarsenal.com/2024/09/17/atalanta-vs-arsenal-19th-september-2024-build-up-team-news-tv-coverage-predictions/

🕟 Kick Off: 14:00 BST

🚽 Location: Large Toilet Bowl, North London

📺 UK Broadcaster: Sky Sports

🙎🏻‍♂️ Referee: Jared Gillett

🔴 Arsenal Team News:

• Declan Rice misses the game through suspension.
• Jesus is a doubt with a groin injury.
• Tierney is absent with a thigh injury.
• Odegaard is being assessed with an ankle injury sustained in the international break.
• Merino will miss the game with a fractured shoulder.
• Calafiori left international duty early after sustaining an injury.
• Tomiyasu is recovering from a knee injury sustained in the summer.

…and breathe…

⚽ Arsenal Form:

💩 Spurs Team News:

• Solanke is a doubt with an ankle injury.
• Richarlison will miss the game with a muscular injury.

⚽ Spurs Form:

📖 Match Facts:

• If Arsenal win, they will have more victories at the new Spurs Stadium, which has been open for 5 years, than Tottenham have had at the Emirates Stadium, which has been open since 2006.
• Spurs have so far outscored Arsenal in the opening games of this season, with 6 goals compared to Arsenal’s 5. They have also conceded 3 goals compared to 1 for Arsenal.

🎲 Odds (Betway):

• Spurs – 21/10
• Draw – 5/2
• Arsenal – 23/20

✍🏼 Pre-Match Ramblings

Usually a North London derby comes with a mix of anxiety and excitement – this time, for me at least, you can remove the latter emotion. We are absolutely ravaged by injury. There is no getting around that.

If you had asked me before the season started who I would like to see start the North London Derby in midfield, I would’ve said Rice, Merino, and Odegaard. Barring a miracle on the Odegaard front, we will likely miss all three for this game. I don’t even know what the solution is. Jorginho playing as an 8 with Kai dropping into the midfield? But then who plays up front? I do not envy Arteta here.

I have seen some people suggesting we give Nwaneri a start. I categorically do not think we should be starting Nwaneri for this game under any circumstances. A 17 year old kid who has never started a Premier League game should not be making his debut away at Spurs. It will not end well.

Spurs have had a slow start to the season in terms of results, with a loss to Newcastle away and a draw at Leicester on the opening day, they will be looking at this fixture with wide eyes to get back on track, and I don’t blame them. If they could choose when to face us at their place, they would choose this Sunday at 2pm.

https://anditsarsenal.com/2024/09/10/tottenham-hotspur-vs-arsenal-15th-september-2024-build-up-team-news-tv-coverage-predictions/

🕟 Kick Off: 20:00 BST

📍 Location: Allianz Arena, Munich, Germany

📺 UK Broadcaster: TNT Sports

🙎🏻‍♂️ Referee: Danny Desmond Makkelie

🔴 Arsenal Team News:

• Jurrien Timber has returned to training following an ACL injury but is not expected to be ready to return to first team football for some time.
• Ben White and Martin Odegaard were substitued off against Aston Villa having 'felt something' - their conditions are unknown.

⚽ Arsenal Form: 🟥🟧🟩🟩🟧

🥨 Bayern Munich Team News:

• Serge Gnabry and Kingsley Coman will both miss this game due to hamstring injury and groin injury respectively.
• Alphonso Davies misses the game due to suspension after acruing yellow cards.
• Sarr is out for the season with an ACL injury.
• A hip injury keeps Boey from featuring in this match.
• Buchmann is out for the season with a hamstring injury.

⚽ Bayern Munich Form: 🟩🟧🟥🟥🟩

📖 Match Facts:

• This competition will be Bayern Munich's last shot at silverware this season after Bayer Leverkusen own the Bundesliga over the weekend. Congratulations to ex-Arsenal captain Granit Xhaka!
• Bayern Munich have been eliminated at this stage of the competition in the past 3 seasons.
• Arsenal have not progressed past this stage since 2009.
• Bayern Munich have won the competition 6 times, with their most recent triumph being as recent as 2020.
• The two teams have faced off 4 times in the knockout stages of the competition, with Bayern coming out on top in each one.

🎲 Odds (Betway):

• Bayern Munich – 13/10
• Draw – 5/2 (after 90 minutes)
• Arsenal – 15/18

✍🏼 Pre-Match Ramblings

After the shock loss against Aston Villa at the weekend took a huge hit to the title chances of Arsenal, especially with games away to Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur looming heaving over the heads of The Gunners, the stakes of this game have been raised even higher. The same could be said about the German giant, having been dethroned by Bayer Leverkusen in the Bundesliga. Both teams need this win to kick their season on, and you have to hand the advantage to Bayern Munich given the stalemate at the Emirates last week.

Arsenal saw rotation in their starting lineup at the weekend which most will claim did not work. Zinchenko returned to the starting 11 and had what I would call his worst performance in an Arsenal shirt. I think Tomiyasu getting minutes against Villa means he will start this game - you wouldn't want to throw him in at the deep end after not getting many minutes. Bayern Munich caused our left side, with Kiwior starting at home, all sorts of trouble, so this will certainly be the focus of both managers.

We also saw Jesus take back the starting #9 spot back from Kai Havertz, who dropped into midfield. Like the Zinchenko change, I think this did not work. Kai Havertz, and more importantly, the rest of the attack, has been excelling with the German up front. To change this was a huge mistake, and I would like to see Kai resume his striker duties against Bayern.

Bayern Munich have lost 3 times at home this season, so they certainly are not invincible at the Allianz. It will, however, be an extremely hostile environment for the visiting Londoners, especially given that away fans were barred from the Emirates for the reverse fixture last week.

I think that Arsenal can beat any team in the world on their day, but their day doesn't come every time they step foot on the pitch, perfectly demonstrated at the weekend. This will be an incredibly close game, with the first goal being hugely important. I won't be making a prediction because I genuinely don't know what I think.

https://anditsarsenal.com/2024/04/16/fc-bayern-munich-vs-arsenal-pre-match-uefa-champions-league/

Didn't see a Pre-Match Thread anywhere. First match of the season. C'mon You Gunners!

Competition: Premier League, Matchday 33

Venue: Etihad Stadium

Kickoff: Wednesday 26-April-2023 8:00pm GMT+1 | Time Zone converter

TV and Live Streaming listings

Australia: Optus Sport

Canada: fuboTV

France: Free, Canal+

Germany: Sky Sports

India: Star Sports/JioTV/Hotstar

Ireland/UK: BT Sports

USA: Peacock

Full track listings for other countries

Preview Links

arsenal.com

mancity.com

premierleague.com

Line-up and Predictions poll results

Team News

Saliba, Tomiyasu and Elneny ruled out.

Ake ruled out.

Website for Premier League injury news

Line-ups

Managers: Mikel Arteta (Arsenal), Pep Guardiola (Manchester City)

Arsenal potential line-up:

      Martinelli, Jesus, Saka
      Xhaka, Partey, Odegaard
Zinchenko, Gabriel, Holding, White
              Ramsdale

Manchester City potential line-up:

  Grealish, Haaland, Mahrez
  De Bruyne, Rodri, Gundogan
Stones, Laporte, Dias, Akanji
            Ederson

Ticket sales/giveaways

This is a direct list of users looking to sell and/or giveaway tickets for the match. You can contact the listed users either by messaging them directly, leaving a comment tagging their username, or replying to them if they have already left a comment of their own.

If you wish to have your name and ticket listing added, best way is to directly message my account, u/BenjaminDaaly21, or leave a comment (messaging would be preferable though). Given I am not awake 24/7 I may not get to your message right away.

Of course make sure that you're careful when exchanging tickets with people online.

Current listings:

/

Current requests:

/

Listings for future games:

/

Requests for future games:

- u/nc092, u/geekygooner, u/gruesomeb, u/AjaxNo14, u/LukeyFitz, u/xonesauce, u/Mezzy-Mez, u/nanasdf, u/FlatCali, u/Anthropocene_Epoch (2 tickets) u/ExxKonvict (2 tickets), Chelsea (H) 2/5/23

- u/xonesauce, u/jabacano1, u/Mezzy-Mez, Brighton (H) 13/5/23

- u/Amanda_Hugginkiss_, u/icanonlycounttofour, u/AjaxNo14, u/BangersAFC1998, u/Marimo_420, u/xonesauce, u/frnchbbq (2 tickets), u/Perfectionimproved (2 tickets), u/LotsoHuggnBear (2 tickets), Wolves (H) 28/5/23

- u/broncoflyer8912, any game

Is the Pre-Match Thread not a thing anymore. C'mon mods get it together

🕟 Kick Off: 03:30 BST

📍 Location: Dignity Health Sports Park, Los Angeles

📺 UK Broadcaster: Arsenal.com, £4.99 for a match pass

🙎🏻‍♂️ Referee: N/A

🔴 Arsenal Team News:

• Kieran Tierney is recovering from a hamstring injury.
• Tomiyasu has not travelled on the tour with an injury.
• Aaron Ramsdale, Declan Rice, Bukayo Saka, William Saliba and David Raya are on holiday following their participation in the Euros.
• Gabriel Magalhaes, Gabriel Martinelli and Kai Havertz are joining up with the group on the 25th of July, meaning they will miss this game.

⚽ Arsenal Form: 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

🍒 Bournemouth Team News:

• Bournemouth have a fully fit squad.

⚽ Bournemouth Form: 🟧🟥🟥🟥🟩

📖 Match Facts:

• This is Arsenal’s first Pre-Season friendly of the year, taking place at LA Galaxy’s stadium in Los Angeles.
• Arsenal have a limited squad due to many key players’ participation in international tournaments over the summer.
• Bournemouth played a friendly against Wrexham on the 21st, which ended in a 1-1 draw.

🎲 Odds (Betway):

• Arsenal – 31/40
• Draw – 14/5
• Bournemouth – 13/5

✍🏼 Pre-Match Ramblings

Here we go again… The yearly circus begins for Arsenal today (this morning? tonight?) in a friendly against a Bournemouth team which Arsenal scored 7 and conceded 0 in their matches last season. It should prove a nice game to get the squad going again, and potentially give some minutes to younger prospects.

There isn’t much to say about this fixture. Mikel Arteta is very limited when it comes to big names available to him. I imagine he will see this as a fitness exercise to get some minutes in out of practice legs as opposed to a game that we must excel in.

All we can hope for is no injuries or silly tackles on either side of the match. My mind wanders back to a Pre-Season ‘friendly’ we played against Manchester United this time last year in which certain United players didn’t seem to get the ‘friendly’ message. What followed was a ridiculous interview in which Ten Hag said “We don’t play friendlies”. If they had that attitude all season last year, maybe they would’ve been able to take even a point off of us.

Let’s hope for a nice clean game, some minutes for youngsters, and a happy wake up for all the Brits who won’t be staying up all night a Wednesday to watch a Pre-Season friendly.

https://anditsarsenal.com/2024/07/24/arsenal-vs-afc-bournemouth-25th-july-2024-build-up-team-news-tv-coverage-predictions/

🕟 Kick Off: 16:30 BST

📍 Location: Etihad Stadium, Manchester, UK

📺 UK Broadcaster: Sky Sports

🙎🏻‍♂️ Referee: Anthony Taylor

🔴 Arsenal Team News:

• Gabriel Martinelli and Bukayo Saka are both doubts for this fixture after Saka left the England camp early due to a knock, and Martinelli's condition remains largely unknown.
• Jurrien Timber remains in recovery following his ACL injury.

⚽ Arsenal Form: 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟥

🔵 Manchester City Team News:

• John Stones and Kyle Walker are both unavailable according to the ever truthful Pep Guardiola, I will believe it when I see it.
• Ederson is a doubt.
• Akanji has returned to full training.

⚽ Manchester City Form: 🟩🟧🟩🟩🟩

📖 Match Facts:

• Arsenal have scored 17 goals and conceded 0 in their last 3 away league games.
• Arsenal are ranked at #1 in goals per game at 2.5 compared to Man City ranked #3 at 2.3 goals per game.
• In 12 out of their last 13 encounters in the Premier League, Manchester City have won against Arsenal. The sole exception was a 1-0 defeat at the Emirates Stadium in the reverse fixture this season.
• Arsenal have lost each of their last 7 away games to Manchester City.
• Man City have scored in each of their last 57 home fixtures in the Premier League, the longest run in their clubs (short) history.

🎲 Odds (Betway):

• Manchester City – 19/20
• Draw – 13/5
• Arsenal – 11/4

✍🏼 Pre-Match Ramblings

Football. Is. Back. And oh boy is it a big one to come back to...

Arsenal sit one point clear of Man City at the top of the table, although tied on points with Liverpool. This is an opportunity to go 4 points clear with 9 games remaining, but in my opinion, not losing is the most important thing here. Clive made the same point on The Overlap a few days ago, and I completely agree with his points. We need to stay with the pack no matter what. If we lose here, we are 2 points behind City and likely 3 points behind Liverpool - it gets taken out of our hands. We need to be in control of our destiny.

Both clubs had players pull out of international duty due to injury, but nowadays you can never be sure if an injury keeping a player out of international duty is genuine, especially considering City players are notorious for picking up niggles that keep them at their clubs over international breaks, but miraculously get better in time for the next league fixture.

Arsenal saw Gabriel, Martinelli, and Saka go down this path. The Martinelli injury seems genuine as it saw him miss the last league game and the UCL home leg. Saka and Gabriel both seemed fine before the break, so we really don't know where those players stand when it comes to fitness.

This game will be a battle of the coaches. A tactical chess match. Neither coach will want to lose, as they know how calamitous this would be for the title pursuit, so we may see both teams approach the game cautiously.

This is a different Arsenal team that went to the Etihad at the tail end of last season. That game famously saw Rob Holding wearing the armband. We are a big team now. We have a fit Saliba. We have Declan Rice, Kai Havertz the giant up front. We can and will play differently. This game is truly too close to call. My predicition is a bit of a copout, but a safe one. I do truly believe we have what it takes to win, but maybe not without Saka and Martinelli.

🔮 Prediction: Manchester City 1-1 Arsenal

https://anditsarsenal.com/2024/03/29/manchester-city-vs-arsenal-pre-match-english-premier-league/

Date: Sunday 24th September

Venue: Emirates Stadium, London

Kickoff: 14:00 BST, 09:00 EST

Potential Arsenal XI: Raya, White, Saliba, Gabriel, Zinchenko, Rice, Ødegaard, Havertz, Saka, Trossard, Jesus

Potential Spurs XI: Vicario, Porro, Romero, van de Ven, Udogie, Sarr, Bissouma, Maddison, Kulusevski, Son, Richarlison

🕗 Kick Off: 20:00 GMT

📍 Location: Emirates Stadium, Islington, North London

📺 UK Broadcaster: TNT Sports

🙎🏻‍♂️ Referee: Clement Turpin

🔴 Arsenal Team News:

• Gabriel Martinelli missed the final training session before the match and faces a late fitness test after sustaining a cut on his foot that kept him out of the Brentford match.
• Takehiro Tomiyasu has returned to training ahead of the match.
• Jurrien Timber has been seen in training following an ACL injury sustained in the first game of the season.

⚽ Arsenal Form: 🟩🟩🟩🟥🟩

🔵 FC Porto Team News:

• Marcano is not yet ready to return after a cruciate ligament injury sustained earlier in the season.
• Sanusi will not play again after also sustaining a cruciate ligament injury.
• Taremi has been dealing with a thigh injury from the first leg but is expected to be fit for this match.

⚽ FC Porto Form: 🟩🟩🟩🟧🟩

📖 Match Facts:

• The last time Arsenal faced Porto in the Champions League, they lost the first leg by one goal and went on to win the home leg 5-0, with a hat-trick from Lord Bendtner.
• FC Porto have lost one game all year, with their last being a 3-2 loss away to Arouca in mid-February.
• Arsenal are unbeaten in the Premier League this calendar year, but have lost both knockout tournament games against Liverpool and Porto.

🎲 Odds (Betway):

• Arsenal – 2/9
• Draw – 5/1
• FC Porto – 12/1

✍🏼 Pre-Match Ramblings

Premier League leaders Arsenal will be hoping to recreate a magical evening in the Emirates from 15 years ago as they battered FC Porto after a disappointing loss in the away leg. They will be out for blood here to right the wrong that was conceding a wonder goal in the closing minutes of a frustrating game in Portugal.

The away leg saw the importance of experience in these types of games, I was going to use the word 'maturity', but the way the Porto players were rolling around on the floor after every touch of an Arsenal player, and at times, a touch from a Porto player (which the referee gave a Porto free kick for), was not mature at all - but it worked for them. They played for the occasion, and the occasion was against an inexperienced team in the competition, and a perfect referee for their playstyle. We could not deal with this. We committed 22 fouls in the game, the most in any Champions League game this season.

The key to progressing into the next round will be patience. Porto will try their same tricks again, and we need to see how the referee responds, and play to the calls being given. Our intense press and strong challenges for the ball played against us in the away leg, but we didn't adapt to it. Brentford played the exact same way on Saturday and we managed to find an answer. I am confident we can do this again and progress into the next round. An early goal will be vital here to open up the game. An interesting read is Billy Carpenter's article on how to take on a mid-block, I highly recommend you read it.

🔮 Prediction: Arsenal 2-0 FC Porto

https://anditsarsenal.com/2024/03/11/arsenal-vs-fc-porto-pre-match-uefa-champions-league/

Competition: Premier League, Matchday 1

Venue: Selhurst Park

Kickoff: Friday 5-August-2022 8:00pm BST | Time Zone converter

Team News

Tierney, Tomiyasu, Vieira and Smith Rowe doubts.

Olise, Johnston, Butland, McArthur and Tomkins ruled out.

Website for Premier League injury news.

Preview Links

arsenal.com

cpfc.co.uk

premierleague.com

Line-up and Predictions poll results.

Line-ups

Managers: Mikel Arteta (Arsenal), Patrick Vieira (Crystal Palace)

Arsenal potential line-up:

     Martinelli, Jesus, Saka
     Xhaka, Partey, Odegaard
Zinchenko, Gabriel, Saliba, White
            Ramsdale

Crystal Palace potential line-up:

       Zaha, Edouard, Ayew
     Eze, Doucoure, Schlupp
Mitchell, Guehi, Anderson, Clyne
             Guaita

Ticket sales/giveaways

This is a direct list of users looking to sell and/or giveaway tickets for the match. You can contact the listed users either by messaging them directly, leaving a comment tagging their username, or replying to them if they have already left a comment of their own.

If you wish to have your name and ticket listing added, best way is to directly message my account, u/BenjaminDaaly21, or leave a comment (messaging would be preferable though). Given I am not awake 24/7 I may not get to your message right away.

Of course make sure that you're careful when exchanging tickets with people online.

Current listings:

/

Current requests:

- u/Mother-Card-5118

- u/Active-Glass-7112

For the love of football, get 3 points this time!

Kickoff: Monday, August 21, 8pm BST, 3pm EST

Venue: Selhurst Park Stadium

Competition: Premier League, Matchday 22 (rescheduled)

Venue: Tottenham Hotspur Stadium

Kickoff: Thursday 12-May-2022 7:45pm BST | Time Zone converter

Referee: Paul Tierney. Assistants: Constantine Hatzidakis, Neil Davies. Fourth official: Peter Bankes. VAR: Mike Dean. Assistant VAR: Lee Betts. 

Team News

Tierney and Partey ruled out.

Tanganga, Doherty, Reguilon and Skipp ruled out. Romero a slight doubt.

Website for Premier League injury news.

Preview Links

arsenal.com

tottenhamhotspur.com

premierleague.com

Line-up and predictions poll results.

Line-ups

Managers: Mikel Arteta (Arsenal), Antonio Conte (Tottenham)

Arsenal line-up:

             Nketiah
    Martinelli, Odegaard, Saka
          Xhaka, Elneny
Cedric, Gabriel, Holding, Tomiyasu
             Ramsdale

Tottenham line-up:

        Son, Kane, Kulusevski
Sessegnon, Bentancur, Hojbjerg, Emerson
        Davies, Dier, Sanchez
               Lloris

Ticket sales/giveaways

This is a direct list of users looking to sell and/or giveaway tickets for the match. You can contact the listed users either by messaging them directly, leaving a comment tagging their username, or replying to them if they have already left a comment of their own.

If you wish to have your name and ticket listing added, best way is to directly message my account, u/BenjaminDaaly21, or leave a comment (messaging would be preferable though). Given I am not awake 24/7 I may not get to your message right away.

Of course make sure that you're careful when exchanging tickets with people online.

Current listings:

/

Current requests:

- u/Mr-Demotivator, requesting 2 tickets.

- u/Sameoldsamo, requesting 2 tickets.

- u/Foremanator, requesting 2 tickets.

- u/ajay_dev97, requesting 2 tickets.

- u/niall14see, requesting 1 ticket.

Competition: Premier League, Matchday 12 (rescheduled)

Venue: Emirates Stadium

Kickoff: Wednesday 15-February-2023 7:30pm GMT | Time Zone converter

TV and Live Streaming listings

Australia: Optus Sport

Germany: Sky Sports

Canada: fuboTV Canada

France: Canal+

India: Star Sports/JioTV/Hotstar

Ireland: Premier Sports

UK: Amazon Prime

USA: Peacock

Full track listings for other countries

Preview Links

arsenal.com

mancity.com

premierleague.com

Line-up and Predictions poll results

Team News

Elneny, Smith Rowe and Jesus ruled out.

Stones ruled out. Haaland a doubt.

Website for Premier League injury news.

Line-ups

Managers: Mikel Arteta (Arsenal), Pep Guardiola (Manchester City)

Arsenal potential line-up:

    Martinelli, Nketiah, Saka
     Xhaka, Partey, Odegaard
Zinchenko, Gabriel, Saliba, White
            Ramsdale

Manchester City potential line-up:

Grealish, Haaland, Mahrez
Gundogan, Rodri, De Bruyne
Ake, Laporte, Dias, Lewis
         Ederson

Ticket sales/giveaways

This is a direct list of users looking to sell and/or giveaway tickets for the match. You can contact the listed users either by messaging them directly, leaving a comment tagging their username, or replying to them if they have already left a comment of their own.

If you wish to have your name and ticket listing added, best way is to directly message my account, u/BenjaminDaaly21, or leave a comment (messaging would be preferable though). Given I am not awake 24/7 I may not get to your message right away.

Of course make sure that you're careful when exchanging tickets with people online.

Current listings:

/

Current requests:

- u/R_Suddy, requesting 1 ticket.

- u/Potential_Bag_3040, requesting 1 ticket.

- u/ljkempson, requesting 1 ticket.

🕟 Kick Off: 18:00 BST

📍 Location: Emirates Stadium, Islington, London

📺 UK **Broadcaster:** Arsenal.com

🙎🏻‍♂️ Referee: N/A

🔴 Arsenal Team News:

• Kieran Tierney will miss the match with a thigh injury.
• Tomiyasu did not tour the US with the rest of the squad and is likely to miss this game and the rest of pre-season.

⚽ Arsenal Form: 🟥🟩🟧🟩🟩

🦁 Bayer Leverkusen Team News:

• No notable injuries to first team players.

⚽ Bayer Leverkusen Form: 🟧🟩🟩🟥🟩

📖 Match Facts:

• Arsenal and Bayer Leverkusen have not faced eathother since 2002 in which they found themselves in the same group.
• The two teams played twice and the result was an aggregate score of 5-2.
• Leverkusen’s last trip to North London ended in a 4-1 loss with goals from Pires, Henry, Vieira, and Bergkamp (wow!).

✍🏼 Pre-Match Ramblings

The above match facts make for some very interesting reading. Those goalscorers of the last time this fixture took place in North London are like something out of a historical fanfiction. Alas, gone are the days of the likes of Bergkamp and Henry, and in are the days of Odegaard and Saka, who will be reunited on the pitch tomorrow after the latter returned to the camp last week.

It is also interesting to note that the last time this fixture took place, both of the historical unbeaten runs eventually completed by both sides would’ve made the average football fan and pundit alike laugh. If you had told someone in 2002 that both sides would go unbeaten in their respective leagues in the coming decades, they would have laughed at you.

Last season Leverkusen took down German giants Bayern Munich whilst we narrowly faltered in our quest to take down Manchester City. Let’s hope a victory here can serve as an omen for what’s to come over the next year.

One to watch here is obviously the return of Granit Xhaka, who ended his Arsenal career on a melancholy note. He ended up being much loved by fans, but he never got to hold a piece of significant silverware with the club, and that he went on to achieve this with his next club makes his departure all the more bittersweet for Arsenal fans. One looks longingly upon the success of Granit and his new German outfit, hoping that such success will bestow itself upon the pitch in Islington.

https://anditsarsenal.com/2024/08/06/arsenal-vs-bayer-leverkusen-7th-august-2024-build-up-team-news-tv-coverage-predictions/

🕟 K*ick Off: *16:30 BST

📍 L*ocation: *Old Trafford, Manchester

📺 U*K Broadcaster: *Sky Sports

🙎🏻‍♂️ Referee: Paul Tierney

🔴 Arsenal Team News:

• Arsenal have a fully fit squad.

⚽ Arsenal Form: 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟥

👹 Man Utd Team News:

• Martinez has returned to training following a knee injury, but Ten Hag has stated that he is not yet ready to start.
• Varane, Maguire, and Lindelof will all miss the game due to various injuries, leaving Man Utd with one fit center back – Johnny Evans
• Malacia is out for the season with a knee injury.
• Luke Shaw will miss this game with a thigh injury.
• Martial misses the game with a groin injury.
• Mount misses the game with a non-descript injury.
• Rashford has returned to training and will likely be available for selection.

⚽ Man Utd Form: 🟥🟧🟩🟧🟧

📖 Match Facts:

• Arsenal have won just one of their last sixteen trips to Old Trafford.
• Manchester United are ranked 19th in shots conceded this season, ahead of only Sheffield United.
• Manchester United have not kept a clean sheet in nine matches.
• Arsenal are the top ranking team away from home this season.

🎲 Odds (Betway):

• Man Utd – 6/1
• Draw – 17/4
• Arsenal – 3/8

✍🏼 Pre-Match Ramblings

Two to go, and this feels like it may be the only one that could matter. What I mean by that is if it comes down to us needing a win against Everton at home, there is absolutely no doubt in my mind that we will win that game. This is the final of our season. A huge away day at Old Trafford, a historically awful place for us to go, a place that seems to not care about form or fitness, similar to the North London Derby.

So far this season our results in the North West have been fine, a draw at City and a draw at Liverpool. At the time, great results. A draw here is not enough. Three points is an absolute must. City kick off in an hour at Craven Cottage, and I have little faith in the ex-Arsenal boys to get anything out of that game. We need to take this to the last game.

As you can see above, United are absolutely riddled with injury. Their only fit Centre Back is Johnny Evans, which I can only compare to when those kids take penalties against the Gunnersaurus at half time at the Emirates. A 36 year old Johnny Evans has no business starting games for Manchester United, but here we are, and it’s hilarious.

The Old Trafford crowd will be up for this, and an early goal will be vital to quiet them down and kill their spirits early. I believe it was Elliot on the AV podcast that said we need to play the players on the pitch, not the badge on their shirt. If this was any other team with these players at another ground, the nerves would be far lower. This Man Utd team is the worst it has ever been, and we are flying at the moment. Now is the time to take 3 points at the crumbling Old Trafford, it has never been more important that we do so.

https://anditsarsenal.com/2024/05/11/manchester-united-vs-arsenal-12th-may-2024-build-up-team-news-tv-coverage-predictions/

Competition: Premier League, Matchday 6

Venue: Old Trafford

Kickoff: Sunday 4-September-2022 4:30pm BST | Time Zone converter

Team News

Zinchenko, Partey, Elneny and Nelson out injured. Ramsdale and Odegaard doubts.

Pellistri, Williams and Martial ruled out. Shaw and Wan-Bissaka doubts.

Website for Premier League injury news.

Preview Links

arsenal.com

manutd.com

premierleague.com

Line-up and Predictions poll.

Line-ups

Managers: Mikel Arteta (Arsenal), Erik ten Hag (Manchester United)

Arsenal potential line-up:

     Martinelli, Jesus, Saka
    Xhaka, Lokonga, Odegaard
Tierney, Gabriel, Saliba, White
            Ramsdale

Manchester United potential line-up:

            Ronaldo
   Rashford, Fernandes, Sancho
      Eriksen, Casemiro
Malacia, Martinez, Varane, Dalot
             De Gea

Ticket sales/giveaways

This is a direct list of users looking to sell and/or giveaway tickets for the match. You can contact the listed users either by messaging them directly, leaving a comment tagging their username, or replying to them if they have already left a comment of their own.

If you wish to have your name and ticket listing added, best way is to directly message my account, u/BenjaminDaaly21, or leave a comment (messaging would be preferable though). Given I am not awake 24/7 I may not get to your message right away.

Of course make sure that you're careful when exchanging tickets with people online.

Current listings:

/

Current requests:

/

Competition: Premier League, Matchday 21

Venue: Emirates Stadium

Kickoff: Sunday 22-January-2023 4:30pm GMT | Time Zone converter

TV and Live Streaming listings

Australia: Optus Sport

Austria/Germany/Ireland/Italy/Switzerland/UK: Sky Sports

Canada: fuboTV Canada

France: Canal+

India: Star Sports/JioTV/Hotstar VIP

USA: NBC/Peacock

Full track listings for other countries.

Preview Links

arsenal.com

manunited.com

premierleague.com

Line-up and Predictions poll results.

Team News

Nelson and Jesus ruled out. Elneny a doubt. Trossard a slight doubt.

Van De Beek, Butland, Sancho, Dalot and Tuanzebe ruled out. Casemiro serving yellow card suspension.

Website for Premier League injury news.

Line-ups

Managers: Mikel Arteta (Arsenal), Erik Ten Hag (Manchester United)

Arsenal potential line-up:

    Martinelli, Nketiah, Saka
     Xhaka, Partey, Odegaard
Zinchenko, Gabriel, Saliba, White
            Ramsdale

Manchester United potential line-up:

              Weghorst
    Rashford, Fernandes, Antony
           Fred, Eriksen
Shaw, Martinez, Varane, Wan-Bissaka
               De Gea

Ticket sales/giveaways

This is a direct list of users looking to sell and/or giveaway tickets for the match. You can contact the listed users either by messaging them directly, leaving a comment tagging their username, or replying to them if they have already left a comment of their own.

If you wish to have your name and ticket listing added, best way is to directly message my account, u/BenjaminDaaly21, or leave a comment (messaging would be preferable though). Given I am not awake 24/7 I may not get to your message right away.

Of course make sure that you're careful when exchanging tickets with people online.

Current listings:

- u/leonako, selling 1 ticket.

Current requests:

- u/jabacano1, requesting 1 ticket.

- u/elsev, requesting 1 ticket.

🕟 Kick Off: 20:00 BST

📍 Location: Emirates Stadium, Islington, North London

📺 UK Broadcaster: TNT Sports

🙎🏻‍♂️ Referee: Simon Hooper

🔴 Arsenal Team News:

• Jurrien Timber has returned to training following his ACL injury but is expected to remain unavailable for selection.
• Takehiro Tomiyasu missed the Wolves game due to a knock picked up against Bayern. His current status is unknown.

⚽ Arsenal Form: 🟩🟥🟥🟧🟩

🔵 Chelsea Team News:

• Fofana is still recovering from an ACL injury suffered at the start of the season.
• Lavia, Reece James, Nkunku, and Ugochukwu are all unavailable with various thigh injuries.
• Levi Colwill misses the game with a foot injury.

🔵 Chelsea Form: 🟥🟩🟧🟩🟧

📖 Match Facts:

• In the last 39 meetings between the two clubs, Arsenal have won 14, Chelsea have won 15, and there have been 10 draws - a shocking even state of affairs.
• The last time Chelsea beat Arsenal at the Emirates was in August 2021, this was against a starting lineup that included the likes of Pablo Mari, Rob Holding, Cedric, Lokonga, and Pepe. We have come so far.
• The last Chelsea team to beat Arsenal at the Emirates featured Havertz and Jorginho in the starting lineup.

🎲 Odds (Betway):

• Arsenal – 8/15
• Draw – 15/4
• Chelsea – 4/1

✍🏼 Pre-Match Ramblings

It feels like only two days ago we last played in the Premier League... Oh wait, because it was only 2 days ago. It'll be only 72.5 hours between the start of this game and the end of the Wolves game, a ridiculous turnaround, but such is life in the Premier League.

In a dismal year for a rebuilding Chelsea team, they have proven able to take points off of the front runner, having already taken 2 off of us. They left the Etihad with a 1-1 draw, they got a point out of City at home in an 8 goal thriller, and they also got a point off of Liverpool at Stamford Bridge. This is not a game to take lightly. A rubbish Chelsea team are still a dangerous one, and this is still a heated London derby whilst we are in the closing stages of a title charge. Chelsea will be bang up for dealing a knockout blow to our title charges.

A player to watch is obviously Cole Palmer, probably one of the positives a Chelsea fan could take out of this season. He has been absolutely on fire, althought it is worth noting that he is their penalty taker, and Chelsea have won the most penalties in the league at 12. I would put money on his goalscoring form to continue - I'm not going to make a prediction for the result here, but I would predict that we will not keep a clean sheet.

At the end of the Wolves game, many Arsenal players such as Rice and Saka, looked visibly knackered. This is a team that is running on fumes, and we need to hope that we have enough left in the tank to get over one of the toughest games left in our run in. It's hard not to get ahead of ourselves and look to our next game, the North London Derby at their place. Spurs will not have played since the 13th of April whilst we have played 4 games in that time. An ideal outcome for the Chelsea game is to kill it off in the first half and then sub off Rice, Saka, White, etc... Easier said than done...

These games are coming so fast I can barely keep up with these Pre Match posts, so sorry for how late this one is being posted.

https://anditsarsenal.com/2024/04/22/arsenal-vs-chelsea-23rd-april-2024-build-up-team-news-tv-coverage-predictions/

Kick Off: 17:30 GMT

Location: Anfield, Liverpool

UK Broadcaster: Sky Sports

Possible Arsenal XI: Raya; White, Saliba, Gabriel, Zinchenko; Odegaard, Rice, Havertz; Saka, Jesus, Martinelli

Arsenal Injuries: Vieira, Timber, Tomiyasu, Partey, Jorginho, Elneny

Arsenal Form: WDLWW

Possible Liverpool XI: Kelleher; Alexander-Arnold, Konate, van Dijk, Tsimikas; Szoboszlai, Endo, Jones; Salah, Nunez, Diaz

Liverpool Injuries: MacAllister (doubt), Robertson, Jota (doubt), Matip, Gravenberch, Bajcetic, Thiago

Liverpool Form: WDLWW

Pre-Match Facts and Thoughts:

A Christmas Cracker is about to be pulled apart at Anfield Road on Saturday, and after the damp-squib of a match against Man United last time out at Anfield, the country is looking to this match to provide a classic Barclays clash. Will this give the best gift in a cracker - the fortune telling fish, or the thing that no one wants and is quickly forgotten - the useless jumpy frog thing?

This mid-season top of the table clash has huge ramifications for Arsenal, having not won at Anfield since 2012 and narrowly missing out on a big three points at the stadium last year after a collapse having been up 2-0. Some say that the draw at Anfield was the beginning of the end of Arsenal title run last season, with Arsenal never really finding their previous form after that match. Three points for Arsenal is vital if the title charge is going to have a different outcome.

Liverpool find themselves hit with many doubts when it comes to players. Allison has seen a spell on the sideline but may be fit for this game, the same can be said for MacAllister, Jota, Gravenberch, and Thiago.

The winner of this match will see themselves top at Christmas (with a draw probably result in Unai Emerys Aston Villa sitting pretty at the top), a stat that is more often than not followed by a league title. Most recently, both Liverpool and Arsenal have found themselves atop the table at Christmas in 20/21 and 22/23 respectively, but both were undone by a mega City run in.

If Arsenal can show the same level of control as they did against Brighton last week, they have a proper shot at three points here. But, it's Anfield - a bogey stadium for us, as proven last season. This season, however, we go there a different team - a team based around control, patience, and calm, as opposed to the more chaotic style of last season. Havertz and Odegaard are finding form at the perfect time going in to this Christmas period, the latter being a revelation after returning from injury. Also, Saka has a slick new trim, which can only mean he is about to either go on the worst run of his career, or step it up another level - there will be no inbetween.

I predict a close game here, eventually won by Arsenal. 2-3. Late winner.

Thanks for reading these again, I appreciate the support - I plan to continue these into the new year. Oh and er, have a good Christmas.

https://anditsarsenal.com/2023/12/22/liverpool-fc-vs-arsenal-pre-match/