The last time both teams met in November, the Gunners grabbed the lead through Alexis Sanchez but were undone by a resilient Swansea side on a very rainy night at the Liberty Stadium. The game will also be remembered for the duel between Jefferson Montero and Calum Chambers and if my memory serves me right, the South American winger took poor ol’ Chambers to the cleaners and even went on to provide the assist that put the game beyond doubt. Fast forward to May, Swansea occupy a modest eight placed position, and are some 27 points behind the Gunners that have their eyes fixed on a second placed finish.
Manchester City’s decimation of QPR has doomed Chris Ramsey’s men to relegation but it has further enhanced their goal difference to plus 41, eight goals better off than the Gunners so it’s very evident that the only way the Gunners can finish in second place is by garnering more points than Manchester City.
Tonight’s match is going to take place at the Emirates Stadium, a ground that has become a fortress for Arsene Wenger’s men in recent times. The Gunners record at home is very impressive as they have lost just one of their last 34 Premier League matches at the Emirates (W24, D9). They have conceded just two goals in their last seven Premier League games at the Emirates but it’s quite strange to know that Arsenal’s last win over Swansea on this ground was as far back as 2011, when a certain Andrei Arshavin scored the solitary goal following an error from Michelle Vorm in a warm September afternoon. Last season, Arsenal would have grabbed all three points against Swansea, but an unfortunate own goal from Mathieu Flamini leveled the contest.
Team News
Wenger has been discussing about some individual players in the squad and he laid some focus on his defenders. The boss believes that Calum Chambers would end up as a center back someday and he has been impressed with the way Laurent Koscielny has grown to become a colossus at the back. Hector Bellerin has talked about his delight in playing regular football but it’s going to be very interesting to see how things pan out at right back because Wenger still harbors plans to keep Carl Jenkinson.
The boss raised some doubts about the fitness of Aaron Ramsey and Danny Welbeck which would be a cause for concern for the fans. The Gunners have an important game against Manchester United coming up next week and they’d have to be at their best to get a good result against their eternal rivals. To achieve this feat, Wenger would need his best players at his disposal.
Injury Updates
Arsenal: Matt Debuchy (hamstring), Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (hamstring), Mikel Arteta and Abou Diaby (lacking match fitness), Aaron Ramsey (knock), Danny Welbeck (knee).
Swansea: Kyle Naughton, Wayne Routledge, Tom Carroll and Nelson Olivieira (ankle), Jordi Amat (foot).
Team Form
Arsenal
- Last Five Games: W W W D W
- Last Result: Hull 1 Arsenal 3
- Leading Goalscorer: Alexis Sanchez (24)
Swansea
- Last Five Games: W D L W W
- Last Result: Swansea 2 Stoke 0
- Leading Goalscorer: Wilfried Bony (9)
Predicted Lineups
Arsenal (4-2-3-1): Ospina; Bellerin, Koscielny, Mertesacker, Monreal; Coquelin, Cazorla; Walcott, Ozil, Sanchez; Giroud
Swansea (4-5-1): Fabianski; Rangel, Fernandez, Williams, Taylor; Cork, Shelvey, Dyer, Sigurdsson, Montero; Gomis.
Gooner Daily says 3 – 0 to the Arsenal
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