Tag: Arsenal

Wenger To Have Another Tough Afternoon

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

IT’S tough times at the Emirates at the moment and it looks like it’s going to get a lot worse at the weekend when Arsenal host Man City.

The Arsene Wenger “out” brigade will be in full voice on Sunday and another defeat will see the pressure mount even more on the Premier League’s longest-serving boss, and the removable object that is Wenger looks set to be in for a very difficult afternoon both on and off the pitch.

Arsenal and, for the first time in his long tenure, Wenger looks to have finally lost the respect of the majority of the fans, and more importantly certain sections of the dressing room.

Star man Alexis Sanchez has already come out publicly with his plea to leave the club and play with a side of “winners” joining Mesut Ozil and Alex Oxlaide Chamberlin, who have also expressed their desire to leave at the end of the season; that is hardly the ideal preparation ahead of one of their biggest tests of the season.

The Gunners’ have won just three times in their last 10, but alarming they’ve had SEVEN defeats in that period. The way they performed last time out in the 3-1 defeat at West Brom, with a lack of desire, heart or team spirit, and how they are as short as 2.87 with William Hill for the win at the weekend has really got me scratching my head.

City has looked good since they were dumped out of the Champions League by Monaco at the last 16 stage, which was the worst performance in Pep Guardiola’s managerial career.

They played a very big part in an entertaining 1-1 draw with Liverpool last time out, which stretched their unbeaten domestic run to 11 matches and I can’t see anything other than a City win in this one, which is a very tempting 2.36 with Paddy Power.

Embarrassment Likely for the Gunners!

I fear, with the anti-Wenger chanting, that if the home side falls behind early on, this could be a long afternoon for the Frenchman. Unlike previous times, when the Arsenal manager has had his back against the wall, he won’t get out of jail this time around, and Man City -1 at 3.20 with most bookies looks tempting as well.

For goals punters, this certainly looks one that will feature a few and over 2.5 goals and both teams to score “yes” will probably be winning bets, but have been priced up accordingly by the layers; instead, I am going to have a small wager on City to heap my misery on the Gunners’ with a 3-1 win which is 18.00 at Paddy Power.

 

Arsenal vs. Bayern Munich Preview: Are the Gunners Mentally Broken?

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

If you’re an Arsenal fan you might want to look away now because this Champions League betting preview is neither going to be flattering or easy to stomach. Let’s start off by getting the elephant out of the room and into the open: Arsenal was poor against Bayern Munich and probably won’t overturn the 5-1 deficit so don’t bet on them progressing to the next round.

Now that’s out of the way, let’s take a look at why Arsene Wenger’s men flopped so spectacularly in Germany. For starters, the loss of Laurent Koscielny didn’t help. The centre-back has played a pivotal role for Arsenal this season and it’s no surprise that Bayern took the opportunity to capitalise on his removal from the game during the first leg. Three goals in ten minutes with Koscielny by the sidelines just goes to highlight his importance to the side.

The Injury Hurt but it’s the Mind that’s Suffering

However, although that injury blow effectively killed off the game and Arsenal’s chances of making the Champion’s League quarter-finals, it was the team’s mental state that was the main concern. With rumours swirling that Wenger will be out at the end of the season and Bayern having done a number on the Gunners in the past, the players appeared to break far too easily. In fact, it’s something Koscielny commented on to the media after the game.

Although Wenger downplayed the “mental problems” comment by suggesting his vice-captain meant the team lacked confidence against Bayern, it appears as though the rot may have set in. Any time a player stands up and suggests there’s a psychological epidemic running through the side, it should raise a red flag to fans. Whether or not the Frenchman’s assessment is correct or not, the mere fact he said it is enough to cause an issue.

With this in mind, it’s hard to see how Arsenal can recover on March 7. Four unanswered goals would do it for them and, if you’re in the mood for a punt, you can currently get odds of 66/1 on that happening with Sun Bets. Now, while that might be a few goals too far, the second leg shouldn’t be seen as all doom and gloom for Arsenal. In fact, the betting odds suggest that the game might actually be quite close.

The Odds are Close but is the Mental Divide too Wide?

Paddy Power has its betting line set at Arsenal to win 2/1 and Bayern to win 13/10. In a similar vein, Coral’s odds makers have it 15/8 for Arsenal and 6/5 for the visitors. From this perspective, the odds aren’t predicting another 5-1 romp for Bayern. Part of that could be due to the fact Koscielny and Aaron Ramsey are likely to be fit for the game. With some extra meat in the middle and a steady head at the back, Arsenal could easily pinch a result.

Sun Bet’s 9/1 on a 2:1 win for Arsenal doesn’t look bad at the price, while Paddy Power’s 12/5 on the draw could offer some decent value. Of course, even with two key players returning, it may not be enough. If Arsenal is suffering from mental problems as Koscielny said, it will be a long night in London. A single goal early could break the team’s spirit and, if that happens, we could be on for another high scoring game.

While we’re unlikely to see Wenger’s men give up five goals at home, 3-1 Bayern looks a strong bet with odds of 14/1 at Coral. There’s no doubt Arsenal will want to salvage at least some sort of consolation from the game, but if those psychological demons strike at any point, then it’s hard to see how they’ll win the match let alone the tie.

Liverpool v Arsenal: Fans Yearn for Return of Past Glories

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It is a huge match historically with the two teams involved having contested some truly memorable games over the years, not least on the opening day of this season when Liverpool shocked the Gunners with a thrilling 4-3 victory at Emirates Stadium.

Who could forget Michael Thomas’ incredible last gasp winner for Arsenal at Anfield to clinch the title on goal difference from Liverpool back in 1989? Or Michael Owen’s late double to win the FA Cup for the Reds back in 2001? How about Andrey Arshavin’s stunning individual four goal salvo in a thrilling 4-4 draw at Anfield back in 2009?

The teams have certainly created some wonderful memories for the fans in recent times, but this coming Saturday’s clash isn’t a battle for the title as it was on that breathtaking night back in May 1989. It is instead a battle for a top four finish, and even that isn’t guaranteed with both clubs facing stern competition from Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester’s City and United, not to mention title shoe-ins, Chelsea. Arsenal is currently as short as 8/11 with BetVictor to finish in the Champions League qualifying places, while Liverpool is longer odds at 11/10 to secure that all-important lucrative top four finish.

Title Dreams Must Wait Another Year At Least

It’s now 27 long years since Liverpool were last crowned champions of England. Reds supporters have had to watch in anguish as Sir Alex Ferguson’s United overhauled their English record of 18 titles before his retirement in 2013. Arsenal too has been suffering something of a title drought of late. Just ask their increasingly disgruntled fans, whose patience with long-serving manager Arsène Wenger is starting to wear thin.

While Liverpool supporters have had to get used to no longer being the kings of England and Europe they once were in the 70s and 80s and are undoubtedly concerned with their club’s tepid start to 2017, they are willing to give manager Jürgen Klopp time to build a squad to implement his ideas and tactics.

Arsenal’s last title triumph came back in 2004, courtesy of The Invincibles vintage. It has been an agonising wait for another title for the club’s supporters and one which shows little sign of ending soon. They have become used to hearing lines about paying off the stadium as excuses for not spending the big bucks and have grown tired of being labelled as happy with a top four finish and Champions League qualification.

Top Four The Only Target

Arsenal currently lies fourth in the table, 14 points adrift of leaders Chelsea, while Liverpool is a further place and point behind following their capitulation to reigning champions Leicester on Monday evening. Having played a match more than their North London opponents too, Saturday evening’s clash at Anfield is a must win for Klopp’s men and Boyle Sports price them at 23/20 to do just that. Arsenal meanwhile, who are almost certainly out of the Champions League following their crushing 5-1 first leg defeat at Bayern Munich, have only the FA Cup and a top-four position to play for. Bet365 among others quote them as long as 13/5 to inflict only a second home league defeat upon their hosts.

In the last eight league meetings between the two teams, 30 goals have been plundered while this season alone they have conceded 61 goals between them whilst burying 109 goals at the right end of the park. With both defences looking leaky, to say the least with an emphasis seemingly more on a ‘we’ll score more goals than you‘ philosophy, goals look assured this weekend and you can get a tempting 2/1 on there being over 3.5 match goals with William Hill.

The first goalscorer markets as always provide great profit possibilities with Sadio Mané, top goalscorer for the Reds with 11 and his Arsenal counterpart Alexis Sánchez, who has 17 goals to his name thus far, both a massive 6/1 with bookmakers including Ladbrokes and Coral to notch that all-important first goal.

Saturday evening’s match should provide great entertainment based on previous encounters between the two teams. It will also give a strong indication as to which of the two giants of English football will achieve a Champions League qualifying berth next season.

Bayern Munich vs. Arsenal: A Recurring Nightmare for Wenger

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

When Arsenal travel to Bayern Munich’s Allianz Arena on February 15, they’ll do so without the weight of history on their shoulders according to the home side’s winger, Arjen Robben.

Ahead of the Champions League clash, the Dutch star, who knows Arsene Wenger’s tactics inside from his time at Chelsea, believes that previous results won’t matter when the two lock horns again. Although it looks as though Bayern vs. Arsenal is something of an annual affair given that they’ve played three times in the last four years. However, in the annals of time, the two clubs have only played each other ten times.

Unfortunately for Arsenal, only three of those ten matches have gone their way. However, when Robben talks about previous results, we all know he’s not citing the bare stats (Bayern with 5 wins and 2 draws), we all know he’s talking about 2013, 2014 and 2015. If we look beyond the 2015 5-1 drubbing (we know, that’s hard to do), Bayern has knocked Arsenal out of the Champions League twice in recent memory.

Does History Matter?

Now, fans will instantly recall these results, but the big question is will the players? Well, Robben doesn’t believe it will register with his teammates. Talking to ESPN, Robben admitted that Bayern have “happy memories” against Arsenal but they will need to be 100% focused if they’re going to come out on top.

“They are a very strong team. Even stronger than last year. They’re doing very well in the Premier League. We’ve played them a few times over the last few years and always won — we always got through to the next round — but maybe this one will be the toughest one so far,” Robben told ESPN.

Now, when Robben gave this interview back in December, his assessment that Arsenal was doing “very well” in the Premier League was a fair one. Today, however, things aren’t so good. Although fourth in the table after 24 games, Wenger’s men look unlikely to claim the title and may even miss out on a top three finish. A recent 3-1 loss to Chelsea summed up just how far Arsenal are off the pace and, unsurprisingly, renewed the “Wenger out” calls from some fans.

Bayern are the Form Team

In contrast, Bayern is four points clear of RB Leipzig at the top of the Bundesliga with just one loss to their name this season. Add to that the customary winter break in Germany and it not only seems as though Carlo Ancelotti’s side will start with fresh legs but a ton of confidence. In fact, if the players took a moment to look at the latest betting odds they might find a few more reasons to smile.

Sun Bets currently has the home side as the runaway favourites at 1/2, while William Hill appears to have taken the most pity on Arsenal at 9/2 (Coral is offering 11/2 on an Arsenal win). Now, does this all mean Arsenal will roll over and give Bayern an insurmountable lead ahead of the second leg?

Almost certainly not, but the recent performance against Chelsea won’t inspire many. Lazy defending from Theo Walcott contributed to Chelsea’s first goal and saw him subbed in the second half. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Mesut Ozil both underperformed, while Alexis Sanchez was isolated throughout. One ray of light in the defeat to Chelsea was Laurent Koscielny who continued to battle even when things were going wrong.

There Will be Goals, but Probably Not for Arsenal

Based on those performances, Arsenal will either have to play out of their skins on February 15 to get some sort of result or simply accept they are going to struggle. Looking through the best options, 16/1 from Sun Bets on a 0-0 could have an outside chance of giving you some value. Arsenal’s players will know their best chance of avoiding elimination and progressing in the competition is to steal a draw in Germany and knick a win at the Emirates. Assuming Koscielny can inspire some sort of skill and desire in the likes of Shkodran Mustafi, Arsenal may have a chance of shutting Bayern down.

However, that certainly won’t be easy. With the likes of Robert Lewandowski and the aforementioned Robben running riot in the Bundesliga (21 goals between them), it’s hard to see how Arsenal get this one done. Assuming history repeats itself, the smart money in this game will be on Bayern to score at least two. Over 2.5 goals is a fairly uninspiring 6/10 at Coral, so if you’re looking for some scorecast value, something like 2-0 Bayern (7/1 at Coral) or even 3-1 Bayern (10/1 at Coral) could be good options.

Unfortunately, if you’re an Arsenal fan, February 15 looks as though it’s going to be a long night. Maybe the Gunners can do their trick of upping their game when it counts and get a result. However, all the signs seem to be pointing towards a comfortable win for Bayern Munich on this occasion.

The Pressure is on Arsene Wenger

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Being out of the Premier League title race by the beginning of February wasn’t something that the Arsenal fans expected or hoped for. The harsh reality is that it has happened. Whatever pressure there was on Arsene Wenger has now been heaped back onto his shoulders. Arsenal winning back to back FA Cups in 2014 and 2015 relieved some of that pressure. Last season was Arsenals big chance in the league. They blew it in spectacular fashion.

The 3-1 defeat to neighbours and title rivals Chelsea last weekend was the final nail in the coffin for Arsene Wenger. Once again they look too weak for the Champions League latter stages. This leaves the FA Cup as their only realistic target. There is an even bigger problem on the horizon. If Arsenal fails to qualify for the Champions League next season then the pressure will be intense on Arsene Wenger.

The Manchester are Teams Coming Good

With just fourteen games to go in the league, Arsenal is now a mere one point in front of Manchester City and only two in front of United. The current form tables suggest that Arsenal and Liverpool are in serious danger of missing out on the Champions League places. Both City and United are improving while Arsenal seems to be misfiring. They only just scraped past Burnley recently with a late stoppage time penalty.

The home loss against Watford last week was hardly a big shock. Arsenal faces Hull City this weekend in what is a must-win game for the Gunners. The title may have gone after their loss to Chelsea, but they are now in a serious dogfight for the top four places. The problem for Arsenal is that Hull now has a new manager and have been impressive in recent weeks.

A Much Tougher Fixture

Hull have taken four points from Manchester United and Liverpool in their previous two matches and have clearly turned a corner with regards to their form. The new Hull City manager Marco Silva has got the team performing again. They need to because their league position is perilous. The betting firms see Arsenal as firm favourites and rightly so. Bet365 have Arsenal at 1-4 and it’s difficult to see value in that price.

Arsenal is likely to win this game but that doesn’t mean that we can back them at any price. The odds of 19-4 on the draw also by Bet365 may appeal better. The superior bet may be the even money odds offered by PaddyPower on both teams to score.

The fact of the matter is that Hull City are not too far behind teams like Burnley and Watford in terms of consistency. Burnley came within seconds of getting a point at Arsenal while Watford beat them. Arsenal is a fragile team given the strength of their squad and that will remain the case until the end of this season.

Chelsea vs. Arsenal: Can Chelsea Keep Another Clean Sheet?

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Some believe it’s already too late for Arsenal to mount a serious challenge for the Premier League title, but if the Gunners are going to do it then February 4th’s clash with Chelsea is a good place to start. Heading into the game, Chelsea appears to have an unbreakable hold over the league.

With 23 games played, 18 wins and 56 points on the board, it looks as though the title is Antonio Conte’s to lose. However, Arsenal and Tottenham haven’t exactly been slouches this season. Although the London clubs are nine points behind Chelsea, a win for the former on February 4 could put the pressure on. Of course, there’s a huge difference between thinking and doing and Arsenal will have to be on top form if they want to get a result at Stamford Bridge.

Experts Don’t Have Confidence in Arsenal

Now, if you listen to Jamie Carragher, Arsenal will be lucky to get a draw on Saturday. With Chelsea drawing at Liverpool and Arsenal ending a disappointing performance against Watford as 2-1 losers, Carragher believes Arsene Wenger’s men will struggle.

“You always feel with Arsenal in the big games they’ll be found out or just come up a little bit short. I don’t see it being any different at Stamford Bridge,” the former Liverpool player told Sky Sports.

Whether or not Carragher is right, the bookmakers seem to agree. The current outright betting line at Sun Bets has the home side as the even-money favourites with the visitors out at 11/4. Things don’t get much better for the Gunners over at Paddy Power with the odds showing 13/5 for the win and 9/4 on the draw.

Arsenal Can Score, but Will They?

For Arsenal fans, it’s not all doom and gloom in the stats department. When it comes to goals scored, Arsenal is leading Chelsea at a difference of 51 to 48. Unfortunately, it’s goals against that seems to be letting Arsenal down. As they showed in the Watford game, they’re more than capable of scoring. However, they’re also prone to letting goals slip. With 25 conceded (Chelsea 16 against), it’s hard to see how Chelsea won’t score at least one on February 4.

If Chelsea does score, recent results suggest that Arsenal probably won’t. Even though a strike rate of 51 goals in 23 games shows they’re more than capable of finding the net, Arsenal’s last nine matches against Chelsea have seen only one team score.

History Suggests a Shutout is Likely

Going all the way back to December 2013, Chelsea has won five games without conceding, while Arsenal has done the same on two occasions. Even the two draws were goalless affairs, which suggests that once one of these teams starts to dominate, they tend to completely shut out the other.

Looking back at the odds, 0-0 is currently 9:1 at 888sport, while 1-0 in favour of the home side is 7:1. For the adventurous, 11:1 is the price for the classic 1 nil to Arsenal but for our money 2-0 Chelsea at 9:1 looks to be the bet of the day. With Arsenal coming into the game on a downer and Chelsea looking strong against Liverpool, it looks as though all three points will stay at Stamford Bridge this time around. If that does prove to be the case, look for Chelsea to come away with a clean sheet and at least a goal or two.