Arsenal v West Brom – Betting Preview

Jaymes Monte’s betting preview highlights the stats, team news, odds and his best bets for Arsenal’s home game against West Brom on Sunday…

Form
Consecutive wins against West Ham, Hull and Newcastle, scoring three goals in each of the games, have put Arsenal back in the driving seat for a fourth place finish at the expense of a stuttering Everton. The Gunners now know that a win here will secure Champions League football for next season and maintain Arsene Wenger’s proud record of never finishing outside the top four in the Premier League.

Olivier Giroud’s goal against Newcastle last Monday makes it two in three for the Frenhcman, while Lukas Podolski didn’t find the back of the net in that game but still has four goals in his last three appearances. Wojciech Szczesny has now played 240 minutes of football without conceding a goal.

West Brom, meanwhile, now look to be safe from the threat of relegation following a 1-0 win against West Ham at the weekend. Saido Berahino got the only goal of the game that moved the Baggies onto 36 points and four clear of third-bottom Norwich, with a game in hand.

The win means that Pepe Mel’s side have now picked up seven points from their last four games, keeping two clean sheets in the process, and have lost only one of their last five league matches.

Team News
Bacary Sagna has been rated as 50/50 for this game due to a knee injury, but is the only fresh injury concern for the Gunners. Theo Walcott, Jack Wilshere, Kieran Gibbs, Serge Gnabry and Abou Diaby all remain sidelined.

Gareth McAuley and Steven Reid are both doubtful for the visitors with niggling injuries, while Liam Ridgewell may be out for the remainder of the season with a knee injury.

Head-to-Head
Both meetings, in the Capital One Cup and Premier League, between the two clubs this season have finished with 1-1 scorelines. Claudio Yacob gave West Brom the lead in the league match at The Hawthorns, with Jack Wilshere getting the equaliser.

Arsenal haven’t lost in seven games against the Baggies since September 2010, and have found the back of the net at least once in every one of the previous 15 meetings.

Recommended Bets
There’s no reason to think that Arsenal won’t pick up all three points and secure that top four spot this weekend, and odds of 2/7 accurately reflect their chances. More appealing odds of 9/5 are available on Arsenal -2 in the Handicap Market and would be my selection in the betting for the match result.

I also like the look of the 11/10 on Arsenal to win without conceding, a bet that would have paid dividends in each of the Gunners’ last two fixtures. Lukas Podolski is the Londoners’ form man in front of goal at the moment and represents a good value bet at odds of 9/2 to score first and 5/4 to net anytime.