please log in to view this image please log in to view this image Arsenal take on West Bromwich Albion at the Emirates this Saturday afternoon in the premier league and the Gunners go into this game in wretched form. In their last three league games since the win over Tottenham Hotspur, they have drawn two and lost one. That has seen them plummet to tenth place in the league. In their last league game, the Gunners put in a truly dreadful performance against Swansea City at the Emirates. Arsenal were once again toothless in attack and their passing was once again sloppy. The game looked like it was heading for a dull draw going into the final ten minutes, but Michu had other ideas, and the Spaniard put Swansea into the lead after he buried a one on one chance against Wojciech Szczesny. He then doubled Swansea’s lead shortly after and condemned Arsenal to yet another defeat. The mood around the club was at an all-time low after that game and Arsenal still had to face a trip to Olympiacos in midweek. The Gunners had already qualified to the last 16, but they still had the chance to win top spot in Group B. And after taking the lead through Thomas Rosicky, Arsenal were on top of their group, but once again Arsenal let their lead slip and Olympiacos turned it around to claim yet another win over Arsenal in Greece. The result did not really matter, but it meant that Arsenal had now already lost six game in all competitions this season. West Brom have been one of the great stories of the season, so far. A team run on a tight budget with a new young manager that had surprised everyone by storming into the top four. Under Steve Clarke, they have also played some of the best football in the league. Nobody saw it coming and many even predicted that they would struggle after Roy Hodgson’s departure in the summer. West Brom have lost their previous two league games and how they respond to that will see what they are really made of. The Baggies have a five point lead over Arsenal at the moment and can extend that lead even further should they win at the Emirates, something they have achieved two years ago. Last season, Arsenal beat West Brom in their two league meeting and their win at the Hawthorns, sealed third place. Arsenal need to win badly and with most of the first team players getting a week to rest, Wenger’s men can have no excuse not to beat West Brom in this must win game at the Emirates. Steve Clarke has had the dream start to his managerial career so far. Clarke is a man that has always been highly respected within the game, but he earned that respect for his work as a coach at clubs like Chelsea,Liverpool and West Ham. But now he has got plenty of admiration for his work as a manager. Claudio Yacob has been one of West Brom’s star players this season and he has really strengthened their midfield. Yacob was playing for Racing in Argentina last season, and West Brom saw something in him that many other clubs did not and they snapped him up. His positional play in the middle of the midfield has seen him able to control the play and be able to feed West Brom’s attacking players. Alongside Youssouf Mulumbu, he has made West Brom into a team that can assert a lot of aggression and steel in the middle of the park. Arsenal’s midfield has lacked that sort of bite and has also lack any sort of balance. The midfield battle on Saturday will be interesting and the Arsenal players will have to up their work rate from previous weeks, if they want to compete against the likes of Yacob and Mulumbu. One thing West Brom have had over Arsenal this season, has been their options in the forward area. With the likes of Shane Long, Peter Odemwingie and Romelu Lukaku, West Brom have plenty of goals in their team. Between them, they have scored fourteen goals in the league so far and they pose different threats. Lukaku provides the muscle and height that can hurt the Gunners, while the other two with their speed can punish the Arsenal defence if they switch off for a second. James Morrison has been the man that has been providing the service to the West Brom strike force. The creative midfielder have been instrumental in all of West Brom’s good attacking play from the midfield. In defence, Jonas Olsson has been a rock for the Baggies and has led his team from the back like he always does. Winning anything in the air against him will be tough, so Giroud has his work cut out. On the road this season, West Brom have played seven games and have only won two of those, while losing three times and drawing in the other two games. So, they have not been that impressive on road. It’s at the Hawthorns, where West Brom has been excellent, despite losing to Stoke in their last home game. Arsenal unlike the Baggies have not been able to rack up the points at home. This season from their seven home games, they have only managed to win three of those. And if Arsenal are to have any hope of getting into the champions league places, then that record has to improve dramatically. Arsenal have also not managed to win back to back league games since September and that has meant that Arsenal have been unable to build any sort of run in the league. One of the very few positives from the last week for Arsenal has been the return of Thomas Rosicky. The Czech midfielder started his first game in six months when he lined up against Olympiacos and he showed something that has been missing from the Arsenal team in the last month. He showed his ability to move the ball quickly and the ability to drive the team forward from midfield by committing defenders and opening up the pitch. He is unlikely to start against West Brom, but his return to the Arsenal squad has given Arsenal fans some hope. Santi Cazorla was rested against Olympiacos and he looked like a man that badly needed it. Of late, the Spaniard has looked a man that had all the pressure to create chances placed on his shoulder and has not looked like the same player that started the season. But with a week’s rest, Arsenal fans will hope that Cazorla can start to get back to his creative best. Arsenal’s normal front three of Theo Walcott, Olivier Giroud and Lukas Podolski was also rested against the Greeks on Tuesday, and like with Cazorla, Wenger will hope that the rest will see them return to some sort of form. If, Arsenal are to start thinking about getting back into the top four, then they need to get a win, no matter how ugly, the Gunners need the win in order to try and build the base to build on. With the doom and gloom around the club at the moment, the atmosphere at the Emirates has not been pleasant, but the players will have to overcome that and try and get the fans behind them by showing the sort of commitment that was missing from their performance against Swasnea. West Brom have been the surprise package of the season and with the players they have in attack they will look to get the win and the Gunners also need the win. After a dreadful few weeks, Arsenal need to get the three points that their fans badly crave. Team News: Arsene Wenger: Form Guide: please log in to view this image Three Key Match-ups: please log in to view this image Shane Long please log in to view this image Youssouf Mulumbu please log in to view this image Jonas Olsson Overall Record vs West Brom: Played: 132 Wins: 67 Draws: 31 Losses: 36 For: 235 Against: 172 Goal Difference: 63 Last 6 Meetings: West Bromwich Albion 2 - 3 Arsenal Arsenal 3 - 0 West Bromwich Albion West Bromwich Albion 2 - 2 Arsena lArsenal 2 - 3 West Bromwich Albion Arsenal 2 - 0 West Bromwich Albion (Carling Cup) West Bromwich Albion 1 - 3 Arsenal please log in to view this image Managers View: Arsene Wenger on finding the flow at home: My Team: please log in to view this image Final Score: please log in to view this image
My only hope is to believe that with the weeks rest, that the likes of Cazorla,Arteta,Wilshere and co can try and do something. Because, if we turn up and stink the place out again, then it really will be the final straw for me.
No excuse this time for tiredness, in fact, no excuses at all anymore, this is a must win situation, no talk of getting a 'good' point if we draw, or a good performance if we don't win, nada, zilch, none of that bull crap. Only a win for Saturday, nothing more, nothing less.
I totally ****ed up buying my train ticket for this one.For the first time ever i booked on line and printed my own ticket.After booking i realised i'd booked the wrong train home and as i'd bought a cheap ticket i couldn't change it.I had to buy another ticket for the home journey.It cost me another £23.75
Gutted matey!! I'll be training it down from Liverpool on Saturday morning, back on Saturday night. Going to cost around £50 I think - looks like I'll have to take Lunch with me!!
There's a few good places around the ground to get something to eat. Get a travel card before you travel and get the bus rather than the underground.It's a hell of a lot quicker
Faster on the Bus from Euston up to the Ground? Same on the way back? I've only ever done one bus in London. That was a night bus, where a random drunk guy started doing forward rolls along the top deck of the bus & told me I must embrace the power of the forward roll in my life, as it would lead me to freedom.
Everytime I book a train ticket, I check it 4-5 times just to make sure all the details are correct. I did a wrong booking to Milan for the game earlier, wanted to book Monday, booked Sunday, so had to go a day earlier, :-D.
I'm sill confident we are going to string a run of results together over the next month or so, but this game against WBA really needs to be a top performance to kick start the team for a run f games they should be winning. WBA have been good this season but i think with fresh legs in the first team and Rosicky possibly going to take part in the game im confident we will get a win. It's definately an important one!
