Concentrate. Concentrate. Concentrate. Arsenal v Sunderland: Match Preview
Can a Black Cat Bring the Gunners Luck?
What happens when you cross a team that hasn’t won once in it last 6 games and a team that has only won once in last games? You get Sunderland visiting the Emirates for a lacklustre EPL matchup.
Except for an FA Cup win over non-league Barrow, Sunderland haven’t gotten 3 points from an opponent since their shocking 1-0 win against Arsenal in November. True, Arsenal carried the play but in the end a 71st minute strike by Darren Bent sealed a victory from a stunned Arsenal side. However, that was the last time the Black Cats got a taste of EPL victory.
Things aren’t going to be any easier as Steve Bruce’s side will be without 6 – yes that’s right 6 first team midfielders. Henderson, Reid, Cattermole, Malbranque, Meyler, and Richardson are all out. Richardson could be back but his is a race against time. Additionally Anton Ferdinand and John Mensah are 50:50 to feature in this match.
But they do feature a big striker in the name of darren Bent and while the team hasn’t been performing, he has. I guess the good thing for the Black Cats is that Bent has stopped focusing in on his twitter account and has focused in on helping Sunderland fight off a quick descent to the relegation zone.
Sunderland will need more than Darren Bent though. Since opening day, they have managed only one away win – 1-0 v Bolton. In their last five away matches they have given up a whopping 16 goals. Not a recipe for staying up and staving off relegation. Also not a good thing when coming to the Emirates where Arsenal have only lost twice this whole season.
Arsenal have been stop and go lately. While they haven’t exactly been amazing, they haven’t been dreadful except for their match against United. Sitting 6 points off of leading Chelsea, Arsenal are still very much in the title race. However, they have yet to show the consistent form that briefly took them to the top of the table.
It could be that the rash of injuries while manageable for a while has finally caught up to the team. With so many people rotating off the trainer’s table you couldn’t blame some players for being tired and bent to exhaustion. It could be that Wenger is grasping at straws keeping players going that have no right going. Finally it could just be that the squad are in over their head and have performed above their level. Whatever it is, the Gunners are going through a rough patch and need to win in order to stay in the hunt.
It seems very likely that at a minimum they have locked up 3rd place. But that will do little to appease the Arsenal faithful. They’ll need to seriously contend for silverware in order to keep the vultures at bay. And trust me they will stay at bay but not much more than that. They will still be very vocal. But the table is set more favorable for Arsenal than it is for United and Chelsea. Matches against the perennial heavyweights are all over and all that remains are a tricky match against City or Spurs. But the form the both of them mkes them still very winnable matches.
While winning the next 12 in a row seems a long task – it is not unheard of in recent Arsenal history. In 2001/2002 the Gunners reeled off 13 consecutive victories to clinch the season and in 1997/98 won 10 in a row to close out the season. But can this squad do what battle tested squads of those years did? It remains to be seen. But for what it’s worth it is now a sprint to the end of the EPL season. It is likely the finalstandings could be decided only on the last day. Whatever its worth it is likely that it will be a fun, gut wrenching, agonizing, joyful, painful or what ever …ful adjectives you can think of.
How the Match Should Play Out:
The Gunners need to surmount their title challenge startin Saturday. They will be in the friendly confines of the Emirates stadium with the faithful there to cheer them on. With a slew of injuries to both sides the match is difficult to call but at home it is difficult to pick against the Gunners. They have yet to score in the opening 15 minutes of any match at home this season. I know I’ve said it before but scoring the early goal is the key to winning for this side. If they can get the match to open up early it will force the opponent to play Arsenal’s game and in the EPL and open game certainly benefits the free-flowing Arsenal. Steve Bruce will no doubt have seen what Chelsea and United did to Arsenal and will likely look to pressure the side and cut down their passing alleys. The problem for Bruce is – his side can ill afford to just sit back and play for the draw. They need a win as much as Arsenal does.
Players to Watch:
Arsenal: Sol Campbell. He played like Sol of old in the match against Porto – and with William Gallas set to have a short spell on the sidelines – Arsene will likely call him to duty more often.
Sunderland: Darren Bent. He scored the lone goal against Arsenal back in November and he is playing for his international life. With so much going wrong at the back – he is the Sunderland bright spot.
Probable Starting XI:
Injuries:
Arsenal: Arshavin (hamstring) Eduardo (hamstring) Diaby (knee) Djourou (knee) Gallas (calf) Gibbs (foot) Van Persie (ankle) Merida (ankle)
Sunderland: Ferdinand (ankle) Malbranque ( chest) Mensah (hamstring) Richardson (calf) Cattermole (suspended) Meyler (suspended) Henderson (ankle) Reid (hamstring)
Recent League Form:
Arsenal: WLLDW
Sunderland: DDDLL
Match Officials:
Referee: Steve Bennett
Assistant Referees: Andy Halliday & Martin Yerby
Fourth Official: Phil Gibbs
TV Broadcast:
US: Setanta/Setanta-i 1000 EST
UK:
Online Feeds:
www.atdhe.net
Game Day Chat will be open! www.youaremyarsenal.com/gamedaychat
YAMA Prediction:
Arsenal: 2
Sunderland: 0
