Match Preview: Arsenal v Newcastle; Stand up and Be Counted

The midweek slaughter of Galatasaray by some of Arsenal’s irregular players may have done a little to wear off the sting from last week’s league defeat to Stoke. However, only putting Newcastle to the sword at home will likely remove that bad taste away for good.

The problem with predicting this match is that for Arsenal, nothing is going as it should. Yes, Arsenal have bad adventures when they travel up to Stoke-on-Trent. But If you predicted Arsenal going down 3-0 in the first 45, let’s talk about the lottery shall we. It was as abysmal a half of football as you can remember.

The moments of “Arsenal” football have been few and far between this season. With 15 matches down we’re near the half way mark of the season and the best way to describe Arsenal right now is, inconsistent and underachieving.

We can likely look to the myriad of injuries that have plagued the squad since day one as one of the reasons. The team, especially in defense, have seldom (if ever) been at full strength or with all of it’s key players available. Additionally, early insistence on experimenting with the 4-1-4-1 meant experimentation in game play when playing in a more comfortable formation likely would’ve propelled Arsenal forward a little easier.

Whatever the reason this isn’t where many of us saw Arsenal being at this point of the season. You can argue that the failure to expand the defensive reinforcements for the squad has been one of the key reasons to our poor play, but it’s only part of the story. Possession and passing, a trademark of Arsenal teams hasn’t been there either and while we’ve got our shots, we’ve not exactly been great on testing goal keepers.

All of that is going to have to change if Arsenal want to at least get to their customary top 4 spot. Newcastle are a good opponent, one that have found their way back up the table after spending the start of the season in the relegation zone. They also aren’t fond of playing Arsenal, having only won once in their last 14 matches against the Gunners. In fact, they’ve lost 5 on the trot to Arsenal, the last coming near the end of last season, a 3-0 loss at the Emirates.

Still, the visitors will come in on a high after giving Chelsea their first loss of the season. But that high will be tempered as much like their hosts, they feature a myriad of injuries and suspensions that limit the options of manager Alan Pardew.

How the match should play out:
Against Chelsea, Newcastle invited pressure and looked to hit Jose’s side on the counter. Especially effective in the middle of the pitch was the performance of Jack Colback helping create that transition from staunch defense to quick counter attack. They will likely look to play as rigid as they did last week, letting Arsenal have the ball and looking for their own chances to switch to attack. Arsenal will look to take advantage of their possession and the fact that the Newcastle fullbacks will tuck in a little when they are defending. This should give Arsenal the chance to work the ball wide and get crosses in.

Arsenal will need to maintain an air of patience either looking to get the ball over the top of a congested midfield or they will need to have their forwards make smart runs when the Gunners have the ball deep in the Newcastle end. They must test the magpies keeper, who happens to be their third string keeper and hasn’t seen much in the way of play. The Gunners have to take their chances when they appear. Chelsea had chances last week but didn’t bury them. Arsenal can’t afford to make that mistake or Papiss Cisse and Ayoze Perez will be waiting to counter attack and hurt us.

Players to Watch:
Arsenal: Santi Cazorla. With Ramsey out he could find himself shifted to a deeper, box-to-box role which did previously this season and was quite good at. Wherever he plays, he needs to be the catalyst for Arsenal’s creativity. 

Newcastle: Ayoze Perez. From the second division in Spain to Newcastle, the Geordies own diminutive Spaniard, loves to put pressure on the back 4 with his speed.

Probable Lineups:

Arsenal (4-2-3-1) Newcastle (4-2-3-1)

Injuries & Suspensions:
Arsenal: Arteta (calf), Koscielny (calf), Monreal (ankle), Ospina (thigh), Özil (knee), Ramsey (hamstring), Walcott (fitness), Wilshere (ankle)

Newcastle: Aarons (hamstring), Elliot (thigh), Krul (ankle), Obertan (thigh), R Taylor (knee), Santon (knee), Abeid (knee – fitness test) S Taylor (suspended -1), Sissoko (suspended – 1)

Head to Head:

Arsenal v Newcastle; Seasonal Head to Head Statistics (INFOGRAPHIC)

Match Officials:
Referee: Lee Mason (10M 25Y 3R)
Assistant Referees: S Burt, A Halliday
Fourth Official: N Swarbrick

Broadcast Information:
UK: Sky Sports 1 17.30 BST
US: NBC Sports Network 12:30 PM EST

 YAMA Predictions:
Arsenal 2 – 1 Newcastle

 Match Facts (courtesy FourFourTwo)

• Olivier Giroud has netted four goals in four Premier League appearances against the Magpies.
• Newcastle United have won just one of the last 14 Barclays Premier League matches against Arsenal (W1 D5 L8) including losing the last five on the bounce.
• Three of the four goals Giroud has scored against Newcastle have been headers. In fact he has scored with all three headers on target he has mustered against Alan Pardew’s side.
• 23 points is the second worst tally of points under Arsene Wenger after 15 games (2012-13 – they had 21).
• Against Stoke, it was the seventh time that Arsenal have conceded from the first shot on target they’ve faced in a game in 15 PL matches this season. In one of those games (v Man Utd) they also conceded before facing the first shot on target through an own goal.
• Arsenal haven’t scored in the first half of any of their last six Premier League matches. The earliest of their last 10 goals was a 60th minute strike.
• The Magpies are the only team yet to score in the opening 30 minutes of their league matches this season. Their earliest goal this season has come in the 37th minute.
• Papiss Demba Cisse has scored seven goals from just 10 shots on target in the Premier League this season.
• Cisse has scored more goals as a substitute than any other player in the Premier League this season (4).
• Since the start of last season, Newcastle have been shown more red cards than any other Premier League side (9)

What are your thoughts on this match? Can Arsenal  make something of this season? Who should start? What do you think the score will be? Let us know.