Arsenal go to Selhurst Park this Sunday in their second match of the 2015/16 Premier League campaign, against Crystal Palace, which will be their third London derby of the season already.
The Gunners have endured a torrid start to their Premier League campaign, losing 2-0 to West Ham last week in a frankly embarrassing match in which the north London side were completely outplayed in all departments, meaning all three points are essential here if they are to stay close to their title rivals in the early stages.
Changes will almost certainly be made in this Sunday’s line-up, after the 11 chosen last weekend failed to make any impact whatsoever on West Ham, and were found out for their naivety in the tactical and defensive department.
Arsene Wenger will opt for pace structured around playmaker Mesut Özil, with the in-form Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, the returning Alexis Sánchez and Theo Walcott occupying the wings and striker role respectively. This pace will work well on the counter-attack against a very direct Palace team.
In retrospect, Palace beat Norwich 3-1 on the opening day, with new £10 million signing Yohan Cabaye notching the third. Cabaye, as we all know, was a heavily linked target in the years before he moved to PSG, from Newcastle.
Alan Pardew has worked wonders with the Eagles, the club he once played for, since taking over earlier last season. Now appearing a stable mid-table club, signings like Alex McCarthy, Connor Wickhan, Bakary Sako and the aforementioned Cabaye continue to stabilise the London club.
The players to watch in the Palace side will be Wilfried Zaha and Pape Souaré. The duo overran Norwich’s right flank last weekend, allowing Zaha to cut inside to a shooting position, with Souaré himself staying on the left, almost as a winger. It was deadly last week, and Hector Bellerín and Oxlade-Chamberlain will have to make sure that they aren’t exposed in similar fashion – the two are sometimes lamented for their defensive ability.
The last time these two teams met last season was in a 2-1 away victory to Arsenal. Goals from Santi Cazorla and Olivier Giroud set themselves up well for the second half, and the Gunners withstood some late, late pressure from the Palace bunch, more namely from Glenn Murray.
It’ll be a difficult match for Arsenal, away from home at an intimidating Selhurst Park. Palace’s direct form of play will challenge the north London side, and it’ll be interesting (and slightly worrying) to see how they cope, and to see if they can match Arsène Wenger’s statement that “It’s how you respond that makes your season”, after such a woeful start to the season.
Team News
For the team in red and white, Danny Welbeck and Jack Wilshere are still nursing knee and ankle injuries respectively, and will return around mid-September. It’s worse news for Tomas Rosicky however – his knee injury will keep him on the sidelines until November.
For Crystal Palace, former Gunner Marouane Chamakh is suffering from a hamstring problem, and will be back in a week’s time. The experienced Julian Speroni has a hand injury and will be out for another 2 weeks – new signing Alex McCarthy will take his place between the sticks for the time being. Kwesi Appiah and Frazier Campbell have knee and hamstring problems respectively.
Predicted Line-Up
Palace (4-2-3-1): McCarthy; Ward, Dann, Delaney, Souaré; Cabaye, McArthur; Zaha, Puncheon, Bolasie; Murray.
Arsenal (4-2-3-1): Cech; Bellerín, Mertesacker, Koscielny, Monreal; Cazorla, Coquelin; Chamberlain Özil Alexis; Walcott.
Prediction
Arsenal are in for a rough ride again, away from home against an in-form Palace side.The Eagles will notch a goal, through Wilfried Zaha. However, Arsenal’s awareness of their shortcoming last week and a strong tactical setup should help them overpower Palace, with goals coming from Theo Walcott and Mesut Özil. Altogether, Arsenal will win this one 2-1, a win which they desperately need if they are to keep themselves in a strong position for this season’s title race.
