It was one of the most infamous World Cup qualifiers in recent memory, but what Argentina’s 6-1 defeat in Bolivia in 2009 has to do with Arsenal’s visit to West Bromwich Albion on Saturday isn’t immediately apparent.
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With 26 points on table, Arsenal are the joint-toppers in the league alongside Manchester City, and are only separated by the goal difference.
Tony Pulis has the Baggies well organised and they don’t concede a lot of goals but they come into the game off the back of consecutive defeats to Leicester and Manchester United which has seen them drop to 13th in the table.
It’s not something Arsenal have always coped well with but more often than not they’ve managed to nullify those threats and taken the necessary points.
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Of course, we have seen many Arsenal teams start strong and then fade away towards the end of the season but something seems to be a little different with this Arsenal team.
However, midfielders Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Aaron Ramsey both remain on the sidelines with hamstring injuries.
Hector Bellerin has recovered from injury and he should start in place of Mathiue Debuchy.
West Brom have not beaten Arsenal in their last 10 meetings and have lost nine of the last 10.
Pulis will likely to look to set up his team in the same manner he often did with his Stoke outfits when they took on the Gunners, meaning the emphasis will be on Rondon to make himself as much of a nuisance as possible in the middle. If he does that, add to the group that he’s got I think they’ve got a wonderful chance this year. Wenger’s boys are set to bounce back from their disappointing performance during their last game and will blow out West Brom in their own stadium.
If he does pass fit to play, Chris Brunt will be a vital part of the game plan for Tony Pulis. My prediction of 0-1 is on offer at odds of 13/2 while I also like the look of Olivier Giroud to score the only goal of the game at 7/2.
Since joining the club in 2012, Giroud has scored more headed goals than any other player in the Premier League (15), including one against West Brom in May 2014.
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West Bromwich Albion welcome Arsenal to the Hawthorns on Saturday afternoon as Premier League action returns following the global break.
