What: English Premier League
Who: Arsenal vs Newcastle United
When: Monday 28th April, 2014, at 20:00 UK Time
Where: Emirates Stadium, London, England
Woken Up Again
After some tough times recently, Arsenal have managed to get back to winning ways, as their victory over Hull City last weekend was their second in a row after having dispatched West Ham. These two results came at a good time for Arsene Wenger as his side had only managed to get two points in the four league games that preceded them – which included heavy defeats against Chelsea and Everton.
Having seen their hopes of claiming their first league trophy in ten years vanish as they are currently ten points behind leaders Liverpool – with three fixtures to go – Arsenal will have a chance to keep their momentum going when they prepare to welcome Newcastle United to the Emirates Stadium.
Arsenal have won five of the past six meetings that coupled them with Newcastle at their own ground. However, defender Bacary Sagna hinted that this will not mean anything as Newcastle themselves will be eager to improve their current image.
“We have to win every single match and play it game by game to qualify for the Champions League and win the FA Cup. It it won't be easy because Newcastle will want to show a different image, they will want to take points and they will want to wake up like we did”, commented the Frenchman.
Awful On The Road
Arsenal might have endured bad luck prior to their last two league games, but Newcastle have one recent form records, having lost their last five league games, with their most recent win being the 1-0 win over Crystal Palace at St James’ Park, more than a month ago, while their last away win in the Premier League coincided with their 4-1 drubbing of Hull City, in March.
To add insult to injury, Alan Pardew might be playing the game that will decide whether or not he remains as the Magpies’ manager, given how things have recently been going for the side.
“Possibly [it might affect my job]. When you lose five games as Newcastle manager, you’ve got to expect criticism and speculation about your job. That comes with the territory and I accept that, but I’m confident the team is in a much better place this week than it has been. We need a big result in our next two games and I like to think we can get it.”
However, things will be hard for Newcastle, as Arsenal are unbeaten in their last 16 home league games, while they have won six of the past seven home games in all competitions against the four-time league winners.
Recent form
Arsenal:
Wigan 1-1 Arsenal (12/04; FA Cup)
Arsenal 3-1 West Ham (15/04; Premier League)
Hull City 0-3 Arsenal (20/04; Premier League)
Newcastle:
Newcastle 0-4 Manchester United (05/04; Premier League)
Stoke City 1-0 Newcastle (12/04; Premier League)
Newcastle 1-2 Swansea (19/04; Premier League)
Key absences
Arsenal: Nicklas Bendtner; Kieran Gibbs; Jack Wilshere; Theo Walcott; Serge Gnabry; Ryo Miyaichi
Newcastle: Papiss Cisse; Davide Santon; Sammy Ameobi; Ryan Taylor; Gabriel Obertan; Luuk de Jong (doubt); Hatem Ben Arfa; Moussa Sissoko (doubt)
Players to watch
Arsenal – Mesut Ozil: After arguably being the best player in the Premier League at the start of the season, Ozil’s form dipped. His numbers in the league are modest, as the German has scored four and assisted eight this term – his lowest numbers ever since making the jump to Real Madrid from Werder Bremen three years ago. Against Newcastle, he has the chance to justify his hefty transfer free.
Newcastle – Loic Remy: The striker is enjoying his loan spell with Newcastle, striking thirteen times in the in the twenty-four league games he has played for the Magpies. Realising that his team are in much need of his abilities and talent up front, he will do everything in his power to turn Newcastle’s fortunes around.
Match Prediction
Having woken up in their last two games, Wenger will be hoping that his players end their season in a decent fashion, starting with a win over their guests. Newcastle are in horrible form, having regularly struggled on the road, and it will take them something out of the ordinary to go back home with all the spoils. Expect Arsenal to get the win.
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