Today evening Chelsea take on Arsenal, and while it’s a tough game to call the result of, there are plenty of things we don’t know – like whether Gonzalo Higuain will be a Chelsea player by then, there are some things we do know.
One things that we do know is that Arsenal have just gone through a serious injury crisis. Rob Holding is out long term, and Laurent Koscielny has been rushed back to fitness with Shkodran Mustafi and Sokratis both having had niggles in recent weeks.
Those three will all likely start, but none are at full fitness and Koscielny in particular looks desperately short of match practice. It looks like our new striker won’t be in the squad for this one, but we’ve still got a great opportunity to exploit the shaky backline we’ll be up against.
With Eden Hazard likely to continue as a false 9, we think Callum Hudson-Odoi will play opposite Pedro, making a really fast and tricky front three. That should really put the fear into that back line, who are ponderous at the best of times.
So on our account you can expect goals, and that can probably be said for the Gunners too. We’ll be at their stadium, and they have a potent combination up front in Alexander Lacazette in Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, and we can expect to concede at least once.
The Gunners have won 13 of their last 16 at home, meaning a very tough test for us. We’ve won our last 3 away games in the Premier League, but only by a 1 goal margin, so we’re only just squeezing by, even against some weak teams. You’d be a brave man to bet on us to win outright, given those numbers, and the fact that we’ve sometimes looked very wobbly this season against the bigger teams.
Therefore the smartest bet in this game looks to be Both Teams To Score, or perhaps over 3.5 goals if you’re feeling very adventurous. A score draw – perhaps a 2-2 – looks on the cards, so that would be a winner all round.
Whatever you bet on, let’s just hope for an early goal in the game to give us a great shot at three points – and a last memory of Hazard as a false 9 before Higuain arrives to step into his place.