Arsenal vs Newcastle: Lacazette vs Gayle and Lascelles vs Gunners’ forwards – where the game will be won and lost
AFTER going three Premier League matches without a win, Arsenal will hope to return to form this weekend against struggling Newcastle United.
The visitors to the Emirates are on a poor run of form, failing to win in their last eight games, losing seven of them.
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That’s seen them drop to 16th in the table, just three points ahead of bottom-of-the-league Swansea.
The Gunners sit in seventh, with 30 points, but are just one point off Tottenham in fourth.
Newcastle’s last win at Arsenal came in October 2010, and there’s no doubt the home side are the favourites.
Kick-off on Saturday is at 3pm, and the game isn’t being shown on UK TV.
Our friends at Football Whispers have previewed the game, looking at where it may be won and lost.
Key battle: Lascelles vs Arsenal front line
There is no doubt that Newcastle’s defence is a lot more solid with captain Jamaal Lascelles in the team.
When their captain’s played this season, they’ve conceded a goal every 104 minutes, yet in the 612 minutes where he hasn’t featured, they’ve let one in every 32 minutes – a clear drop off without the former Nottingham Forest man in the side.
And the 24-year-old is now back from injury, having played 90 minutes in their 1-0 midweek loss to Everton.
He will have a tough task against an Arsenal front three, likely to be made up of Alexis Sanchez, Mesut Ozil and Alexandre Lacazette, despite the Frenchman being rested in midweek to let Olivier Giroud make his first Premier League start of the season.
Between the Gunners’ front three, they have 14 Premier League goals between them this season and will be a real threat.
Potential match-winners: Lacazette and Gayle
Not only has Lacazette scored the most goals for Arsenal in the Premier League this season (eight), he also has the highest expected goals (xG) rate too (8.42).
That suggests he’s the most likely Arsenal player to score and will likely be fit and ready after being rested for the midweek game against West Ham United.
For Newcastle, their best hope of getting a goal will surely be Dwight Gayle.
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After a poor start to the season, where he failed to score, the 27-year-old is now the Magpies’ top scorer, alongside Joselu, with three.
He’s already scored against big teams this season, netting the opener against Manchester United and Chelsea, but Rafa Benitez will hope that his team could hang on if Gayle repeats the feat against Arsenal, rather than see them fall to a defeat as they did against the Red Devils and the Blues.
Managers’ tactics
Arsene Wenger lined up with a 4-2-3-1 against West Ham in midweek, but it would be a surprise if he doesn’t return to the 3-4-3 he has used for the rest of the season.
Benitez has been tempted with a 4-4-2 in recent weeks to ease his team’s goalscoring woes, but that didn’t bring much success at all.
He switched back to a 4-2-3-1 against Everton in the week, and although the Magpies lost, he will probably stick with the formation which he definitely trusts more.
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How the teams are likely to be set up
Arsenal could see Shkodran Mustafi restored to the starting lineup after he returned to training on Friday. Aaron Ramsey and Theo Walcott will also miss out through injury.
Arsenal (3–4-3): Cech; Koscielny, Mustafi, Monreal; Bellerin, Xhaka, Coquelin, Kolasinac; Ozil, Lacazette, Sanchez
Jonjo Shelvey will miss the game after being sent off against Everton, but other than that, Benitez has a full squad to pick from.
Newcastle United (4-2-3-1): Darlow; Yedlin, Lascelles, Lejeune, Manquillo; Merino, Hayden; Ritchie, Perez, Atsu; Gayle
Key stats heading into the game
Arsenal have lost just once at the Emirates in the Premier League this season, winning the other seven games.
No other player in the English top flight has received more yellow cards than Isaac Hayden’s six.
Arsenal have won their last nine Premier League ties with Newcastle, a run that stretches back to August 2011.