Taking a break from both Premier League and Champions League duty, Arsenal head to Deepdale to take on Preston North End in the fourth round of the EFL Cup on Wednesday night.
The Gunners, who have not lifted this trophy since 1993, brushed aside English League One outfit Bolton 5-1 to book their place in the round of 16.
As for the Premier League, Mikel Arteta’s men now find themselves five points off the pace after being pegged back twice in Sunday’s 2-2 draw with Liverpool.
While the EFL Cup might rank fairly low down on Arsenal’s list of priorities this season, their superior class should tell against second tier Preston.
Having said that, the Lilywhites eliminated top-flight opposition in the previous round when drawing 1-1 with Fulham before going to win an incredible penalty shootout 16-15.
While Paul Heckingbottom’s side are currently languishing down in 16th place in the English Championship, they are unbeaten in each of their last five games following Saturday’s pulsating 3-3 draw with Plymouth.
How the bookies view it: Arsenal to advance with ease
Unsurprisingly, Arsenal are heavy favourites for the win on Wednesday night, with an away success as short as 1/4 on Bet 365.
Preston are 11/2 on Bet 365 to pull off what would be a huge shock, while the 90 minute draw is also deemed unlikely at 11/2 with the same firm.
Head to head: Gunners get job done
Fixtures between Arsenal and Preston have been few and far between over the years. The pair have come up against each other just three times in either the EFL Cup or FA Cup since 1999, with Arsenal claiming top honours on each respective occasion.
Players to watch: Sterling to strike gold?
Raheem Sterling scored his first goal for Arsenal in the aforementioned 5-1 rout against Bolton. The Gunners forward is 4/5 (Bet 365) to register either a goal or an assist on Wednesday night and that looks worthy of interest.
Ben Whiteman has already been booked six times across his 11 English Championship outings for Preston this season, so a repeat here could be worth siding with once player card prices have been released by the bookmakers.
Predicted line-ups
Preston boss Heckingbottom is likely to tinker with his side on Wednesday night, though one player he will not be able to call upon is the suspended Milutin Osmajic.
Both Ethan Nwaneri and Myles Lewis-Skelly featured in the previous round for Arsenal and the young duo could get the nod again at Deepdale this midweek.
Preston: Woodman; Kesler-Hayden, Storey, Lindsay, Hughes; Whiteman, McCann; Holmes, Greenwood, Brady; Riis
Arsenal: Porter; White, Heaven, Kiwior, Lewis-Skelly; Merino, Jorginho; Zinchenko, Nwaneri, Sterling; Jesus
Anything else catch the eye?
Backing Arsenal to win, under five match goals and over three Arsenal corners will bring about a 4/5 Bet Builder on Bet 365 that could be worth getting on board with.
Arteta will likely have one eye on Saturday’s trip to Newcastle in the Premier League, so much so that he will likely want his side to get the job done here with minimum fuss.
This bet would have paid out in each of the Gunners’ last two victories, and with fixtures coming thick and fast, the same formula merits support in Lancashire on Wednesday night.
This EFL Cup match between Preston and Arsenal will be played on Oct 30, 2024 and kick off at 19:45. Check below for our tipsters best Preston vs Arsenal prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
