Arsenal and their clash against Brighton & Hove Albion during Matchday 15 left them tenth in the table, only five points above the relegation zone and ten under the top four. As such, Arsenal’s crucial match away at West Ham United on Monday night now takes even more importance.
Their awful display against Brighton leaves fans wondering about Arsenal’s ability to bounce back from nine games without a win. What could we see from the Gunners on Monday?
Arsenal’s Crucial Match Away at West Ham United
Team Analyses
Both teams have reasons to go all out for the win. Arsenal, for one, have not won a single match since their victory against Bournemouth two months ago. Plus, even after the sacking of Unai Emery, Freddie Ljungberg has not shown improvement in the team’s results on the pitch.
The boys in red and white have only won four of their opening 15 league games this season. With that, according to Onefootball, Arsenal have scored just 1.4 goals per game and have conceded 1.5 per game.
For a team that prides itself on its attacking prowess, this is fairly disappointing. Not only is it disappointing for the attacking front, but the defence as well. Conceding more than scoring is bound to lead a team to defeat almost every match.
West Ham United, on the other hand, have a worse goals scored and goals conceded record, standing at 1.1 and 1.7 respectively. Unlike Arsenal, though, the Irons have actually won a game within the past 60 days. Their shock win over Chelsea may give them an advantage over Arsenal if results are anything to base upon.
With both teams, a win will see them leverage away from the relegation zone, currently inhabiting Everton, Norwich City, and Watford. A loss for Arsenal can see them drop as low as 15th in the table. West Ham could see themselves in 18th place if they were to lose to the Gunners.
Key Players
Arsenal: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
Arsenal, the away team in this fixture, are no doubt going to rely on their star striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to get them the goals on Monday. He has scored ten goals in 15 outings this term and hopes to add more.
Aubameyang has scored a majority of his goals away from home this season. However, with the goals going into the opposing net, the team need to sort out their backline before the Gabon ace’s goals mean more than securing either a draw or a consolation in defeat. Arsenal’s away form has been known to be sub-par in recent years, so who knows what might happen?
West Ham: Sebastien Haller and Declan Rice
It’s almost all about the strikers this match. The West Ham faithful could place much of their hope on the shoulders of out-of-form Sébastien Haller. Although the Frenchman has only scored four goals this term, this does not eliminate him from being a threat to a vulnerable backline. He desperately needs to rediscover his form.
Another player that West Ham will need to step up to the plate is Declan Rice. The English defensive midfielder has started every game for Manuel Pellegrini’s men this season, impressing as usual. The Irons will certainly want their starlet to shine here against Arsenal’s infamously shaky midfield.
Line-ups for Arsenal’s Crucial Match at West Ham
West Ham United
Pellegrini’s Irons are missing key goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski due to injury, so they’ll more than likely stick to the man who kept them their most recent clean sheet, David Martin.
A defence consisting of Aaron Cresswell, Issa Diop, Angelo Ogbonna, and Ryan Fredericks is likely. Declan Rice should partner Mark Noble in the middle of the park. Andriy Yarmolenko, Pablo Fornals, and Felipe Anderson are all expected to start. If Haller is played over Michail Antonio, then, as mentioned before, his form could come back with this match.
Arsenal
Arsenal’s weekly starting line-ups have been frustratingly inconsistent, as proven under Unai Emery. In fact, some could argue that it’d be near impossible to predict a lineup for any given match.
There’s no doubt about Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Bernd Leno starting. If it weren’t for their performances, Arsenal would be in the relegation zone.
On the other side of the Gunners, it’s not easy to predict the front-runners to start against West Ham. So, what would the most logical lineup consist of for Freddie Ljungberg’s boys?
Arsenal’s best defence at the moment is Kieran Tierney, David Luiz, Sokratis, and Héctor Bellerin. To provide bite and movement to the midfield, Lucas Torreira should start with Matteo Guendouzi. Now, here comes the hard part: the attacking third.
Arsenal fans have been begging for a front four of Mesut Ozil, Alexandre Lacazette, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, and record signing Nicolas Pepe. This would require Arsenal’s top scorer to shift out to the left, where he hasn’t been as effective. Pepe himself hasn’t done much to earn respect from the coach or fans this term.
However, a player who has done similar, and has a much better goals tally this season, is Brazilian starlet Gabriel Martinelli. He can fill in that left-winger role, leaving Aubameyang to play in his preferred striker role. This does drop Lacazette to the bench, but if a player is under-performing, he can take their place in the second half and add his skill to the game.
A good front four for Arsenal would be Ozil behind Aubameyang, with Martinelli and Pepe occupying the wings.
How Could These Lineups Trump Each Other?
Arsenal’s attack easily overpower West Ham’s front line, but the defence for each time is what is to be questioned. Knowing Arsenal’s away record and poor defence over the past few months, West Ham have a good chance to defeat their London rivals.
Arsenal are yet to show much resolve under their interim boss, but there is a chance that they can turn it all around with this one, even with their bad defence.
Score Prediction: West Ham 1-2 Arsenal
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