Arsenal will look to strengthen their position at the top of the Premier League table as they welcome mid-table Bournemouth to the Emirates in the lunchtime kickoff on Saturday.
Arsenal’s hopes of a quadruple have quickly evaporated over the past couple of weeks, as defeat in the Carabao Cup final to Manchester City was followed by a shock FA Cup exit away at Southampton last Saturday.
Mikel Arteta’s men did return to winning ways in midweek though, prevailing 0-1 in the Portuguese capital against Sporting CP in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final tie.
The Gunners are still in pole position to clinch their first Premier League crown in 22 years, as four consecutive wins has them nine points clear of nearest challengers Manchester City, albeit Pep Guardiola’s men do have a game in hand.
Bournemouth’s sequence of draws continued before the international break, as they played out an entertaining 2-2 draw at home to Manchester United, on an evening when both of my selections landed.
Andoni Iraola’s hosts are now unbeaten in each of their previous 11 Premier League outings (W4-D7-L0), remarkably drawing each of their last five, leaving them in 13th position, four points behind seventh-placed Brentford.
How the bookies view it: Arsenal favourites
As expected, Arsenal are favourites to claim a fifth consecutive victory in the Premier League, with bet365 pricing a home success at 9/20.
Bournemouth are 6/1 underdogs, whilst a sixth consecutive draw for the Cherries is priced at 10/3.
Head to head: Gunners dominance
This is a fixture that Arsenal tend to dominate, with the Gunners winning 12 and losing just three of their 17 Premier League meetings (W12-D2-L3), including a 2-3 success in the reverse fixture at the Vitality at the turn of the year.
However, the Cherries did do the double over the Gunners last season, including a 1-2 victory on their last visit to the Emirates.
Players to watch: Declan to deliver against the Cherries again?
Declan Rice was the hero for Arsenal in the reverse fixture, as he scored twice in Arsenal’s 2-3 victory at the Vitality.
The ex-Hammers midfielder has scored five goals and provided two assists across his previous eight appearances against the Cherries, and bet365 has him priced at an appealing 7/5 to Score or Assist.
Backed a player to find the net? Check our Goalscorer Betting guide to see how the markets work and where to find value.
Predicted line-ups:
Mikel Arteta will be without the injured Piero Hincapie and Mikel Merino, whilst Eberechi Eze, whilst Jurrien Timber and Bukayo Saka will be assessed.
Bournemouth will be missing the injured Julio Soler and Justin Kluivert, but Lewis Cook and Tyler Adams should return.
Arsenal: Raya, White, Saliba, Gabriel, Calafiori, Zubimendi, Rice, Odegaard, Madueke, Trossard, Gyokeres
AFC Bournemouth: Petrovic, Jimenez, Hill, Senesi, Truffert, Scott, Christie, Rayan, Kroupi, Tavernier, Evanilson
Anything else catch the eye?
Bournemouth have become draw-specialists in the Premier League this season, with 15/31 (48%) of their encounters ending in a stalemate, including in each of their last five and seven of their past 11.
However, Iraola’s men tend to struggle when travelling to the top sides, losing four of their six visits to the top seven (W0-D2-L4).
All six of those clashes have gone Over 2.5 Goals, so combining an Arsenal victory and three or more goals appeals at 1/1 at bet365, a selection that also paid out in the reverse fixture.
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