Match Preview: Arsenal v Swansea City: EPL Match Day 4

Ah, after the frenetic chaos that is the summer transfer window close and the pointlessness that is the international fixtures, it is finally nice to have some football back. And after all that mess, it would be fair to say this has to be considered almost a re-start to the season for Arsenal.

We endured the transfers of our biggest star and the biggest money grubbing . . . We also endured the endless rumours of the transfer speculation, hits misses and everything else in between. We also had the ignominious raping at Old Trafford that really got all our panties in a twist. But its gone and there are changes in the squad and for some fans there is a desire to fall in love with the team again. And yet, there are others who still think we are going to fall short.

Whatever your view is, it all starts again with the match at home against Swansea City. Swansea are this season’s debuante darlings and even though they have yet to score a goal they are putting on apt performances having eeked out two draws and made Man City work for their win. They do well to build from the back and feature a stout defence.  They like to play in a 4-3-3 and much like another team we know, play to keep the ball.

For Arsenal much that happens on the pitch is going to seem strange to the fans. For the first time in a while the man at the center of the pitch pulling the strings won’t be a name we’ve seen before in Arsenal red. Last minute signing Mikel Arteta from Everton, is set to make his debut as the lynchpin in the Arsenal midfield. While the press are quick to try and draw us into the “replacing Nasri or Cesc” debate it is not fair to the player or any player to be compared to anything except what they do on the pitch themselves. Arteta while suffering from some injuries while at Everton,  is a creative and capable player more than apt at filling in the role and making it his own. In fairness to him, he hasn’t had some of the talent around him that he finds himself with now. He hopefully will come out looking to show he belongs.

Also likely to make their Arsenal debut is Per Mertesacker. Merte, as he has been called, is looking to emulate the play of his Arsenal hero, Tony Adams. There are few people who could find a better player to emulate but Merte is no slouch. He has 75 international caps to his name.  Has played in a league that is as good as the EPL. While Mertesacker would likely be better off with Vermaelen as his partner, he will start with Koscielny who is showing a rapid ascendence of prominence in the English game. He still makes mistakes but he shows constant improvement. They should be good at the center of the defence. What will be interesting is if with Merte in the line up Wenger resorts to old form and abandons the high line, instead opting for one of the CBs to venture forward if it is warranted.

Arsenal will also be bouyed by the returns Bacary Sagna, Kieran Gibbs and Emmanuel Frimpong who all return from illness, injury and suspension respectively.  Obviously the ones we will miss, Vermaelen, Wilshere and Gervinho (and Song) will be sorely missed. Though this is the last missed match for Gervinho and Song with this being the third match they will miss from their Newcastle suspensions.

Arsenal need to move on beyond the frustration of the first three weeks. They need to show that they can pull up the boot straps take the renewed excitement (and yes its there) about the team and run with it – literally. They need to get back to Arsenal football. And if that means grinding out 1-0 wins – so be it. I have to be honest, Boring Boring Arsenal is something I would be happy with so long as it meant winning.  Either way, this team needs to show that it can be competitive. That it can win.  This run of three games are all very winnable fixtures. If they falter here it will not take long for any questions to be asked.

How the Match Should Play Out:

Swansea as we said built from the back and they have a pretty good defending corps. They were resolute against City but once they made a mistake it was all over. Swansea like to to play football and in a 4-3-3, it plays into Arsenal’s hands. The question will be whether or not Arsenal are able to take advantage of the mistakes.  Look for Arsenal to try and take advantage of being at home and build some early momentum. Walcott who has been in impressive form early on for the Gunners and international duty should have his way with the Swansea defence.

Players to Watch:

Arsenal: Mikel Arteta. He comes into central midfield with a lot of expectations placed him. He is is own man and his own player and he should show exactly why he is both of these in this match.

Swansea: Scott Sinclair. Has the ability to beat players one-on-one but is failing to deliver with any sort of shot consistency.

Projected Starting XI

Injuries and Suspensions:
Arsenal: Gervinho (suspended – 1) Song (suspended – 1)  Wilshere (ankle) Diaby (ankle) Vermaelen (ankle) Rosicky (knee) Squillaci (calf)

SCFC: Situ (inelligible – awaiting  clearance) Halliche (inelligible – awaiting clearance)

Leading Scorers:
Arsenal: Walcott 3 (1 league) Van Persie  2 (1 league)

SCFC:

Goals For:

Arsenal (home): 0

SCFC (away): 0

Goals Against:
Arsenal (home): 2

SCFC: (away): 4

Last Five:
Arsenal: LLD

SCFC: DDL

Goal Difference:
Arsenal: -8

SCFC: -4

Match Official:
Referee: Stuart Atwell

Broadcast Information:
US: FSC 1000 AM EST

UK: ????  1500 BST

GAMEDAY CHAT: It’s Open!!!!!!

www.youaremyarsenal.com/gamedaychat

YAMA Prediction:
Arsenal: 3

SCFC: 0

Final Words:

If the international break is any indication of our boys finding form then the Gunners could benefit from the time away their players spent with their national teams. New boy Ju-Young Park scored a hat-trick (header, goalazo, and rough angle shot) for South Korea in their match against Lebanon. Robin Van Persie scored 4 in Holland’s demolition of  its opponent. Ramsey scored against Montenegro and was man of the match against England. Arshavin for the first time in a long time looked lively playing for Russia and wasn’t crucified by the Russian press. Walcott while he didn’t score looked very good up front for England.  In the Poland v German match, one pundit said there was only one world class player on the pitch that day – Szczesny.

For the the most part Arsenal’s lads did well. They did not return with a plethora of new injuries. Though, Rosicky took a kick to the knee and is doubtful for the Swansea match.  All in all it was a good international break. It came at the right time for this club and we can all hope that the boys know how to take their level of play from the internationals into the league (where it really matters.)

There were concerns that Park wouldn’t even make the bench for the match because of a Visa issue and the player was stuck in Paris. It looks like that has been worked out and Park will be in the squad along with Benayoun and Santos. Whether Santos plays is not known. His last competitive match was during Copa America and he is short on fitness. If he plays he will be on the bench.

Finally – for some extra reading might I suggest John Cross’s article on the injury issues at Arsenal. Crossie is always a good read and now has a weekly Arsenal piece every Thursday.  http://www.mirrorfootball.co.uk/opinion/columnists/john-cross/John-Cross-The-truth-about-Arsenal-injuries-Thomas-Vermaelen-Jack-Wilshere-Theo-Walcott-article795990.html

Until after the match – Stay Gooneris!!!

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