Tag: Arsenal

FA Cup Semi-Final Previews

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FA Cup holders Arsenal face Reading on Saturday with Liverpool playing Aston Villa on Sunday in the semi-finals at Wembley.

The Gunners are the in-form team in the Premiership and have stormed into second place. They are now going in pursuit of leaders Chelsea who have been far from convincing in recent weeks. The clash between Chelsea and Manchester United could open the door for an unlikely Premier League title for Arsene Wenger’s side who host the Blues next weekend.

In the meantime, they will look to take another step towards retaining their treasured silverware in the FA Cup against Reading. With eleven victories in their last twelve matches, confidence could not be higher at Arsenal. They have Olivier Giroud almost scoring at will with ten goals in as many matches and a fully fit squad heading into the final games of the season. This time last year, Arsenal needed penalties to get past Wigan before stumbling to a two-goal deficit in the final. The pressure of ending their long wait for a trophy seemed to be almost too much.

They are now free from such concerns and I cannot see them faltering against an out-of-form Reading. Since sneaking past Bradford in a replay, Reading have lost three of their last four matches. They have failed to score in almost six hours of football and this looks set up for the Gunners to go through to the final in style.

Sunday’s clash between Liverpool and Aston Villa looks far more competitive with Tim Sherwood having led a revival in Villa’s fortunes. They are still fighting for their Premiership lives but the return to form of Christian Benteke has given them a very powerful weapon. When he is at his best, he can torment any defence in the league and Liverpool could be in for a difficult time.

Liverpool’s form has deteriorated in recent weeks and a top four spot seems to have slipped away from them. They are clinging on to the hope that Man City go into freefall and allow them to overtake them but it looks unlikely. Their extra motivation for reaching the final is to secure another trophy for departing skipper Steven Gerrard. On their best form, they should certainly beat Villa but it may be worth taking a chance on Benteke causing an upset.

Arsenal (-2.0 handicap) @15-8 Skybet

Arsenal 4 Reading 0 @12-1 Skybet

Giroud to score and Arsenal win @Evens Totesport

Christian Benteke to score and Villa win @13-1 Bwin

Benteke to score at any time @11-4 Ladbrokes

Villa to win by a single goal @7-1 Paddy Power

Premiership Preview April 4th – 6th

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The Premier League returns after the International break and kicks off with the lunchtime clash between Arsenal and Liverpool at the Emirates.

Arsenal have the incentive of moving above Man City into second place with the champions not due to play until Monday. Their recent form has been impressive, including their brave attempt to overturn a 3-1 deficit in the Champions League against Monaco. They could not quite manage the 3-0 win that they needed but I was impressed with their all-out attack that night.

Olivier Giroud is the man in form with Alexis Sanchez having gone off the boil slightly in recent weeks. Arsene Wenger has plenty of attacking options including Theo Walcott and they should be able to unlock the Liverpool defence. The visitors are currently on a run of six away games without conceding but the suspension picked up by Martin Skrtel could prove damaging.

Liverpool’s hopes of a top four spot will be severely dented if they lose this one with Manchester United also having improved in recent weeks. The Red Devils grabbed a 2-1 win at Anfield last time, courtesy of two goals from Juan Mata. The Spaniard has been steady rather than spectacular this season but produced a piece of individual brilliance to seal the points.

With Wayne Rooney also in good form, it is difficult to see Aston Villa coming away with anything from Old Trafford this weekend. Tim Sherwood should be able to steer them to safety and they still have the FA Cup to chase.

Jose Mourinho has been busy with his calculator and the Blues need six wins and a draw to seal the title from their remaining nine games. Those fixtures include Arsenal, Liverpool and Man United so they cannot afford to drop points at home to Stoke. They have a phenomenal record against the Potters but may start without Diego Costa. His hamstring is still an issue, although he is in Saturday’s squad.

Harry Kane did not hit the target for England against Italy but will still be basking in the glory of his goal against Lithuania on his debut. Tottenham travel to Burnley on Sunday and should be good enough to take all three points. Sunderland take on Newcastle in desperate need of points but they cannot expect any favours from their Tyneside rivals.

Man City could find themselves in fourth place by the time they face Crystal Palace on Monday night. They could be trailing Chelsea by nine points so they will need to dig deep to keep their title hopes alive. Sergio Aguero has a habit of bailing them out when they need it and he can do so again on Monday.

Arsenal to beat Liverpool @10-11 William Hill

Olivier Giroud to score at any time @13-10 Bet365

Man United (-1) to beat Aston Villa @5-6 Paddy Power

Juan Mata to score at any time @2-1 Totesport

Chelsea (-1) to beat Stoke @5-6 Paddy Power

Tottenham to beat Burnley @5-4 BetVictor

Harry Kane to score at any time @6-5 BetVictor

Sergio Aguero to score at any time @9-10 BetVictor

Premiership Preview – Saturday 21st March

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As expected, the Premiership interest in the Champions League came to an end this week with Arsenal and Man City following Chelsea out of the exit door. Everton were thrashed last night to end their run in the Europa League so domestic football is all that remains for EPL fans.

Manchester City were fortunate to escape without an embarrassing score line in Barcelona, thanks largely to Joe Hart in goal. That defeat followed on the heels of an expensive defeat at Burnley in the Premiership and they need to start winning immediately if they are to have any hope of defending their title.

The knives are already out for Manuel Pellegrini as there seems no room for failure these days. They are at home to West Brom in the early kick-off and I expect Albion to give them a game. Odds of around 4-1 for a draw are tempting as City try to drag themselves back in touch with Chelsea. They are now looking over their shoulders at the chasing pack and another slip up on Saturday could see them drop to fourth this weekend.

Southampton’s season has faded slightly but they were still good enough to hold Chelsea at Stamford Bridge last week. A similar display would bring them three points at home to Burnley, although the Clarets will be buoyed by their win over City.

Dick Advocaat begins his short-term appointment at Sunderland with a trip to London to face West Ham. Sam Allardyce, linked with the Sunderland job for next season, has allowed his side to slump alarmingly in recent weeks. Even so, the Black Cats were so appalling against Aston Villa last week that it would be no surprise to see a home win.

Tim Sherwood has seemingly produced a miracle cure at Villa Park with his side scoring goals and winning. They could continue the trend at home to Swansea who lacked a cutting edge against Liverpool last week, eventually losing 1-0 to a fluke goal by Henderson. I was impressed with Arsenal against Monaco in midweek. What a shame that they did not play half as well at home. Their Champions League may be over for another year but they are challenging City for second place and I can’t see them slipping up at Newcastle.

Tottenham were awful against Man United in the first half last week and need to bounce back at home to Leicester while Stoke v Crystal Palace has “draw” written all over it.

Man City v West Brom DRAW @19-4 Bet365

Aston Villa to beat Swansea @6-4 Bet365

Arsenal to beat Newcastle @8-13 Paddy Power

Southampton to beat Burnley by 1 goal @27-10 BetVictor

Stoke v Crystal Palace DRAW @23-10 Bet365

Tottenham to beat Leicester @3-5 Bet365

West Ham to beat Sunderland @9-10 BetVictor

Champions League – Monaco v Arsenal Preview

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Things are looking ominous for British teams in the Champions League this season. Chelsea were knocked out last week by PSG following a tetchy 2-2 draw after extra-time. The Blues had drawn 1-1 in Paris but were eliminated on the away goals rule. Arsenal and Man City both lost their home legs and need to produce something special to extend their interest in the competition.

Arsenal face Monaco on Tuesday night needing to overturn a 3-1 deficit after a disastrous first leg at the Emirates Stadium. The Gunners were guilty of some woeful defending and were duly punished by a well-organised Monaco side. That leaves Arsenal having to score three times against a team that qualified with the best defensive record in the competition. They only conceded one goal in three home games in winning their group.

Although Arsenal have become a regular fixture at this stage of the tournament, they are facing elimination before the quarter-finals for the fifth consecutive season. Arsene Wenger has been quick to blow his own trumpet about their record in the competition but there is a growing frustration at their inability to go deep into the competition.

The Gunners have faced such adversity in the past and are capable of putting up a brave fight. They won 2-0 in Bayern Munich after losing the home tie 3-1. It was not enough to keep them in the competition and I fear that they will face a similar result on Tuesday. Just one goal from Monaco will effectively kill-off any lingering hopes that Arsenal may have and a 2-1 away win seems a real possibility.

Arsenal have been in fine form in the league and are now just one point behind champions Manchester City in third place. They recently stunned City with a victory and have also beaten Manchester United. Monaco are unbeaten in their last 16 at the Stade Louis II but they face a tricky tactical dilemma. The natural tendency is to try to hold what you have and that could give Arsenal a chance to forge a victory.

Tuesday’s other tie sees Atletico Madrid welcome Bayer Leverkusen to Spain with the Germans having won the first leg 1-0. Atletico could be left to rue the failure to score an away goal and go into this game with only one win in six games. Their patchy recent form almost mirrors that of Chelsea who came unstuck last week. Diego Simeone’s team will be without Diego Godin and Thiago Mendes through suspension while Leverkusen are only a roll with five consecutive wins. If Leverkusen poach a goal, this is going to be really difficult for the home side.

Arsenal to win @11-8 Totesport

Monaco 1 Arsenal 2 @9-1 Paddy Power

Atletico Madrid to win @8-11 Bet365

FA Cup Quarter-Final Preview

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The FA Cup dominates the weekend football with only one Premiership match taking place. The powers-that-be have saved the best until last with Manchester United’s clash with reigning champions Arsenal on Monday.

The action gets under way at lunchtime on Saturday with the un-inspiring game between Bradford and Reading. Bradford are still euphoric from their 4-2 win at Stamford Bridge and saw off Sunderland in the last round. Having claimed two Premiership scalps, they will be bitterly disappointed if they cannot beat Reading but this could be a tight contest. Reading have won their last three matches in the competition away from home. There have been red cards in recent meetings between these two so stand by for a stormy encounter.

Aston Villa and West Brom will be sick of the sight of each other if they cannot get a result inside 90 minutes. The two slugged it out on Tuesday night with Tim Sherwood delighting the home fans with his pitch-side antics. Quite where the FA Cup fits in with their battle to stay in the Premier League I am not so sure but this looks ominously like draw material.

Liverpool became tournament favourites after the draw gave them a home tie with Blackburn. They are not playing the same fast-flowing football that nearly won them the league last season but they are grinding out results. A 2-1 win over champions Man City was backed up by a midweek victory over Burnley to keep them in the chase for a Champions League place next season. They should have too many guns for Rovers, particularly with Daniel Sturridge gradually returning to form.

Man United have worked their way into the top four but you wouldn’t know it from the press reports. We keep reading about “long-ball football” and the miserable form of Di Maria and Falcao and yet United are fourth in the table. They have not exactly worked teams over this season but fortune seems to be on their side. Tim Krul’s brainstorm gave them a 1-0 win in midweek at Newcastle and they will be relishing the clash with Arsenal.

The Gunners are a bit of a puzzle with solid league performances either side of that horror show in the Champions League against Monaco. They are defending their precious silverware and odds of 2-1 look generous.

Bradford to beat Reading @13-8 Betfred

Aston Villa v West Brom DRAW @11-5 Matchbook

Liverpool (-1.0) to beat Blackburn Rovers @10-11 Sportingbet

Arsenal to beat Man United @2-1 Bet365

Premiership Preview Feb 28th – March 1st

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What a miserable week that was for British teams in Europe! Manchester City and Arsenal are on the ropes in the Champions League while Liverpool, Tottenham and Celtic all went out of the much-maligned Europa League. City really should be dead and buried but Lionel Messi’s incredible double miss left their hopes dangling by a thread. There was no such reprieve for Arsenal and they will need to produce something spectacular to get out the hole that they have dug for themselves against Monaco.

Premiership leaders Chelsea play Tottenham in Sunday’s Capital One Cup final as Jose Mourinho bids to win his first trophy since re-joining the Blues. It can hardly be called a drought after one season but they won’t have it easy having lost 5-3 against Spurs in the league this season. Mourinho’s side will also be keeping an eye on title rivals City who could cut their lead to just two points if they win at Liverpool on Sunday.

It was ironic that Mario Balotelli was substituted before the penalty shoot-out, one of the few things that the Italian is good for. Perhaps not the most inspired piece of management by Brendan Rodgers but he won’t care if they can beat City on Sunday. The Premiership title holders seemed to be back firing on all cylinders after scoring nine goals in two Premiership matches but they looked clueless against Barcelona. If in doubt, go for the draw seems the best policy.

That could apply to a number of games this weekend with the clash between Stoke and Hull and London derby between West Ham and Crystal Palace looking evenly matched. The Hammers have flattered only to deceive on a number of occasions in recent weeks and their failure to hold on to a 2-0 lead at Tottenham last week summed up their season.

Man United stumbled against Swansea but should get back on track at home to Sunderland. There is no sign yet of the miraculous form that took the Black Cats to safety a year ago, but it is still early days in the relegation battle. Everton could end up being the sole surviving British team in Europe and they travel to Arsenal who must be stunned by their Champions League defeat. Will the Gunners be able to resume normal service? 11-2 looks a big price for Everton.

High-flying Southampton were disappointing against Liverpool last weekend and could suffer a further blow at West Brom on Saturday. Albion are looking much better under Tony Pulis and 5-2 under-estimates their chances.

West Ham v Crystal Palace DRAW @5-2 Ladbrokes

Man United to beat Sunderland @2-5 Paddy Power

Stoke v Hull City DRAW @5-2 Totesport

West Brom to beat Southampton @5-2 BetBright

Liverpool v Man City DRAW @13-5 Bet365

Everton to beat Arsenal @11-2 William Hill