After a thrilling Champions League fixture against PSG , Arsenal now come back to the Premier League, as the promoted Hull City host them today.
So far Arsenal have had a sundry start to their Premier League Campaign , losing and drawing their first two fixtures respectively and followed by two great wins against Watford and Southampton.
Continuing the two-match winning streak will be a tough task for Arsenal, as question were raised about their poor first half performance against PSG in the Champions League.
On paper, Arsenal have a very good record against their opponents, having won 16 of the 21 games between both sides, drawing five and losing just one. However, on the pitch, Hull City have a very well-organised back four, as they showed in the game against Manchester United.
Despite the manager’s concern for Theo Walcott’s injury, he might still be available to play but is highly unlikely to start the game. It will be surprising to see Lucas Perez start the game against Hull ahead of Olivier Giroud despite him winning penalty against Southampton in the dying minutes of the match.
Player to watch on the pitch will be Alexis Sanchez who had an impressive presence against PSG and is likely to continue his form against Hull.
Though Arsenal’s play is highly reliable on possession and domination, Hull’s impressive four will look to defend deep and hit Arsenal on their counter attacks. It could well be an easy fixture for Arsenal on paper, but on pitch , Hull City are highly spirited to break Arsenal as they did to the rest of the teams who doubted their potential, by losing just one out their last four games.
Overall, Arsenal are favourites only on paper against Hull, unless Arsenal work it out by not making too many errors defensively. They still hold an advantage over Hull with more goals scored but still lack that oomph that most title winnings team have in them.
Predicted Score
Hull City (0) – Arsenal (2)
Arsenal’s Predicted Starting Lineup : Cech; Bellerin, Mustafi, Koscielny, Monreal; Xhaka, Cazorla, Alexis, Ozil, Iwobi, Perez
Injury Update : Aaron Ramsey is back in training while Gabriel could be on the bench for game against Nottingham Forest in EFL Cup. Carl Jenkinson, Danny Welbeck and Per Mertesacker are still out.
