The Premiership resumes this weekend, and with that a set of crucial fixtures for Arsenal that could go a LONG way in defining the league season for manager Unai Emery. After their trip to the London Stadium, the Gunners will host Maurizio Sarri’s Chelsea in the league, followed by a mouthwatering Cup clash against old rivals Manchester United. They then have a somewhat easier game in the form of Cardiff City, followed by a trip to the Etihad to take on Man City.
West Ham away is by no means a gimme for the top six. Manuel Pellegrini has cobbled together a fairly formidable outfit at the London Stadium and his side have a habit of playing to the level of their opposition. That has resulted in some fairly good performances against big name opposition this season, and indeed, Emery will be the first to tell that the 3-1 scoreline when the two teams met earlier this season flattered Arsenal.
Both teams come into this game on the back of FA Cup victories- West Ham saw off Birmingham City 2-0 at home in a game that also marked the debut of new signing Samir Nasri, while Arsenal’s reserves were too good for Blackpool, emerging with a 3-0 win from Bloomfield Road. Nasri, of course, is a former Arsenal player, and will be keen to get one over against his former employers if he gets an opportunity to take the field this weekend.
A lot will depend on whether or not Fabian Balbuena is fit this weekend. West Ham have looked shaky defensively since the Paraguayan picked up an injury, and his absence even seems to have affected rising star Issa Diop, whose own performances have looked a tad below his usual high standards in the Hammers’ last few fixtures. If Balbuena recovers, those 5/2 odds on the home side winning at WH look very tasty indeed. We used this William Hill promo code last time around, and it came in very handy. A draw is currently being quoted at 11/4- another potentially attractive option. Arsenal can be fragile defensively, especially on the road (see stats below), and in Felipe Anderson and Marko Arnautovic, West Ham have two quality players who could cause the Arsenal backline all kinds of problems.
Arsenal’s away form (last five games on the road, all competitions, most recent first)
Blackpool 0-3 Arsenal
Liverpool 5-1 Arsenal
Brighton 1-1 Arsenal
Southampton 3-2 Arsenal
Man Utd 2-2 Arsenal
That’s only one win in the last five on the road, and that too at Blackpool. Arsenal lost to Southampton at St.Mary’s- West Ham won against them at the same venue last month.
Arsenal’s away league record this season– P10, W4, D3, L3, GS 20, GA 21.
The 21 away goals they’ve conceded is the fourth highest in the league- only Fulham, Bournemouth and Burnley have conceded more.
There’s also the case of the referee for this game, Jonathan Moss- one has to go all the way back to 2016 for West Ham’s last loss under him. This will be Moss’ first WHUFC game this season, but he’s already been in charge of two Arsenal games. The results were mixed for the Gunners- they beat Everton 2-0, but lost by the same scoreline in the Cup to bitter rivals Spurs.
The corresponding fixture last season ended in a goalless draw (that game was also refereed by Moss!)