With Arsenal arguably in their best run of form this season, Newcastle United face a tough test when they make the trip to the capital on Monday (Arsenal 1/2, draw 3/1, Newcastle 13/2).
The Gunners tore apart AC Milan in their last outing, with a 3-0 whitewash in the Champions League, which will have left manager Arsene Wenger thinking “if only”. Despite a fine performance at the Emirates, the north London outfit crashed out of the European competition 4-3 on aggregate but will be able to take plenty of positives from the way they played against the Italian side.
Attentions will now be solely focused on securing Champions League football for next season, with a top four finish in the Premier League being a must for Wenger, who has managed to turn things around having been under intense pressure for his job last month.
The Gunners will welcome back midfielders Mikel Arteta and Aaron Ramsey to the side having recovered from a head and ankle injury respectively, with the pair set to bring more creativity to the team in the middle of the park. That will be great news for the club’s star striker Robin van Persie, who will benefit from the extra chances he will get from the returning playmakers.
The Dutch international has continued his fantastic form, which does not look like it’s going to stop, as defenses continue to struggle to handle the 28-year-old, who has been linked with moves to both Real Madrid and Barcelona. Expect Van Persie (5/2 first goalscorer) to cause the Magpies plenty of problems at the back and it wouldn’t be surprising to see his name on the scoresheet once again on Monday.
As for Newcastle, they will be looking for a much better result than they got in their last trip to north London, when they were thumped by Tottenham Hotspur 5-0 last month. The Magpies produced a rare lacklustre performance, as they were outclassed by Spurs at White Hart Lane and manager Alan Pardew won’t want that to happen again at the Emirates.
It will be an interesting midfield battle on Monday night, with Chiek Tiote set to break up and create attacks in a game the visitors might see little of the ball. However the Black and Whites do have some exciting options in attack with the likes of Demba Ba (8/1 first goalscorer) and Papiss Cisse likely to cause a less-than-watertight Arsenal defence problems.
There should be plenty of goals in this game, with neither side boasting sturdy defences but having plenty of options in attack (8/13 Over 2.5 goals). Expect Van Persie to be in the goals once again as he looks to add to his 32 goals in the current campaign.
In their current form it’s hard to look past Arsenal winning this one after their thumping of Milan but Newcastle should have a better time of it than on their last trip to the capital.
Want £200 Free? Click here to visit Bet365 and claim your free money.