Arsenal welcomes AFC Bournemouth to the Emirates Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
Arsenal is currently sitting at the top of the Premier League table and will be looking to extend their lead with a victory over Bournemouth. The Gunners have been in good form recently, winning their last three games in the league, including a dominant 4-0 win over Everton during the week.
Gabriel Martinelli’s double followed by strikes from Bukayo Saka and Martin Ødegaard secured a 4-0 victory over the Toffees, as Mikel Arteta’s side achieved revenge after last month's defeat against Everton.
Whereas for Bournemouth, it was a tough day at the office against Man City last Saturday, after picking up their first win of the new year against Wolves the previous week.
Erling Haaland, Phil Foden and Julian Alverez were all on target, with Chris Mepham’s own goal early in the second half resulting in a heavy defeat for the Cherries. Jefferson Lerma struck late on to ease the deficit.
-
Team News
Gabriel Jesus remains sidelined for Arsenal, but he is steadily stepping up his recovery from post-World Cup knee surgery.
Mohamed Elneny is expected to miss the rest of the season with a serious knee injury, while Jorginho could be a doubt after suffering from illness this week.
Arteta spoke out after the win over Everton that Eddie Nketiah has been carrying a knock of late, with Leandro Trossard starting the previous two games as a false nine.
Gary O'Neil's side has a number of injuries at the moment, with Lewis Cook, David Brooks, Marcus Tavernier, Junior Stanislas, and Matias Vina all out for Saturday's clash.
Lloyd Kelly and Illia Zabarnyi are close to returning, but it seems unlikely that the pair will be fit enough to feature on Saturday.
-
Likely Lineups:
Ramsdale; Zinchenko, Gabriel, Saliba, White; Xhaka, Partey, Ødegaard; Martinelli, Saka, Trossard
Neto; Smith, Stephens, Senesi, Zemura, Mepham; Lerma, Billing, Ouattara, Traore; Solanke.
-
Key Players
Arsenal - Bukayo Saka:
Was this going to be anyone else? Martinelli and Ødegaard have both been great for Arsenal, but Saka has been the key man in the Gunners attack this season, whether that is him creating the chances or putting them away. The English forward has struck ten times and chipped in with nine assists, in the league.
Conveniently enough, he made his 100th Premier League appearance in the 3-0 win at Bournemouth, becoming the second youngest Gunner to reach that milestone. He also scored the winning goal against Liverpool to send the Gunners top of the Premier League, where they would stay until mid-February.
Saka has always been an important player under Arteta since he took over four years ago.
Bournemouth - Dominic Solanke
Solanke has been the main frontman for the Cherries, as he looks to end the season outperforming his expected goals tally of 4.16 – as he currently sits on three goals scored.
The former Chelsea and Liverpool striker has also created four goals this season, which allows him to have the most goal contributions from a Bournemouth player.
He will also offer more than just a goalscoring threat, as he is strong in the air and can comfortably play with his back to goal, which you can expect to see against Arsenal as the Cherries will look to pull off a shock result.
-
Match Details
Where is the game being played?
It is a trip to London for Bournemouth as they take on Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium.
What time is kick-off?
The contest between the two sides is scheduled to take place this Saturday afternoon, 3pm kick-off.
Where to watch?
Unfortunately, the game will not be shown live due to the ongoing 3pm blackout regulations in England. However, there will be highlights from the game shown on Match of the Day.