After last week’s 3-2 win against Brighton, attention switches back on to the Premier League and a meeting with struggling Aston Villa at the Emirates Stadium.
Team News
The big team news ahead of the Sunday kick-off involves Alexis Sanchez. The Chilean superstar is doubtful for the Villa clash with a slight hamstring strain. It is probably best for all concerned that he sits out of tomorrow with games against Spurs and Monaco on the horizon. Arsenal should have enough to beat Villa with or without their talisman.
Danny Welbeck also looks set to miss out, with Arsene Wenger pointing to the North London derby as a more realistic target for his return. Oxlade-Chamberlain, Wilshere, Debuchy and Arteta also miss out for the home side.
Luckily for us, Villa will be without Ron Vlaar and could be without Fabian Delph – another key player for them. Agbonlahor, like Alexis, has a hamstring issue and could miss the game. Which is probably a good thing, as he can often cause us problems with his pace and power.
Back to Arsenal, I would love to see Theo Walcott start the game. He made an impact in last week’s win vs. Brighton and I’m sure he’ll do the same if afforded the opportunity tomorrow. Let’s hope he doesn’t suffer any more setbacks and can stay injury-free for the rest of the season.
Analysis
It’s our first league outing since that win at the Etihad. It’s time to build on it and really stake our claim as being one of the best sides in the country. With Chelsea and Man City playing out a draw, tomorrow’s game gives us a chance to gain points on both. Even without Alexis Sanchez I really fancy us.
Villa have been pretty poor this season and have trouble scoring goals. If we can get an early goal, I can see them collapsing and it being a comfortable game. It’s imperative we start well. Give them the chance to gain some confidence and we might not have it all our own way.
Santi Cazorla will come back into the team, meaning we could see Rosicky, Cazorla AND Ozil in the same midfield. I’m excited to see that if it happens.
Prediction
We should win tomorrow, pretty comfortably. I’ll go with 3-0. Giroud to bag a brace.
