Arsenal welcome out-of-form Sunderland to the Emirates this Saturday to kick off their defence of the FA Cup, in a match where the Gunners will be the clear favourites to progress.
Arsenal are picking up momentum in the league going into this fixture, with last week’s 1-0 win over Newcastle to continue their stay at the top of the table. The north London side persevered a valiant and driven Magpies display and managed to come away with the three points following a Laurent Koscielny goal from a set-piece. It was a match dominated by the fight and physicality of the match-up, rather than an excess of quality. Despite this, Arsene Wenger has made sure that, as a result of the last two league games, his side are in pole position to win a first league title since 2004.
The last time Arsenal played in a domestic cup fixture was away in Sheffield at Hillsborough, in what was a mauling of an inexperienced and flawed second-string side. The makeshift Gunners back-line on that night made schoolboy error after schoolboy error and were blunt and ineffective in the attacking proceedings, resulting in this season’s quest for Wenger’s first League Cup ending abruptly as well as multiple injuries to the squad. Given that Saturday’s occasion will most likely involve said reserve players, they’ll have to prove their quality to the manager or risk falling even further down the pecking order.
Today’s opposition will be looking to go on a giant-killing cup run to restore some happiness to their otherwise depressed support, who’ll be making the long journey from the North down to the capital. The Black Cats continued their mission to escape the drop zone last week, with an uplifting 3-1 win over fellow strugglers Aston Villa, after a Jermain Defoe brace helping his side to a much-needed three points. This win, coupled with the signing of ex-Bayern and Schalke defender Jan Kirchhoff to boost their leaky defence, will give the Sunderland faithful some faith in a shock victory – which would instantly improve Sam Allardyce’s approval rating at the Stadium of Light.
A player Arsenal need to watch out for is Yann M’Vila. The Frenchman had notoriously been linked with the Gunners in years gone by when Arsenal fans were clamouring for a defensive midfielder, although now the former Stade Rennais player has a reputation for an on-and-off player who failed to deliver on potential, although he still possesses the style of play to offer a moment of magic to turn the game around from the bench, as legs tire – which is exactly what Sunderland will be hoping for.
A player Sunderland have to keep an eye out for is Jeff Reine-Adelaide. The youngster is starting on the bench as part of a whole host of changes to the 18-man squad, and it should be interesting to see a glimspe of what he can offer to the team – both in the short-term and perhaps the future as well. The Frenchman will be raring to go to make his mark on the game, so it’s predicted he’ll be a bright spark in the team.
The last time these two teams faced off, Arsenal cruised to a fairly comfortable 3-1 win over Sunderland. Goals from Joel Campbell, Aaron Ramsey and Olivier Giroud sealed a strong win for the Gunners. Wenger will be hoping that, despite the less talented players being on show this time round, a similar win can be strung together.
Match facts
– Arsenal have the home advantage in this match-up, winning over half of the matches ever recorded in London (38 wono ut of 72)
– Arsenal haven’t lost any of the last five matches that have been contested, drawing one and winning four.
– 15 goals have been scored in the last five matches all together.
– Mesut Özil has created 57% of Arsenal’s 33 goals in the Premier League this season (16 assists, three goals).
– No other player has provided more assists than Mesut Özil (20) in Europe’s top five leagues in 2015.
No new injuries for the Gunners – it’s Jack Wilshere, Tomas Rosicky, Danny Welbeck, Alexis Sanchez, Santi Cazorla and Francis Coquelin that remian injured.
Starting XIs
Arsenal (4-2-3-1): Cech; Bellerin, Koscielny, Gabriel, Gibbs; Chambers, Oxlade-Chamberlain; Walcott, Iwobi, Campbell; Giroud.
Sunderland (4-2-2): Pickford, van Aanholt, Cattermole, O’Shea, Lens, Graham, Toivonen, Coates, Fletcher, Yedlin, Watmore.
