ARSENAL TO WN AT STADIUM OF LIGHT

Arsenal travel North this weekend to take on a revitalised Sunderland in a game that's vital to their top 4 ambitions and I'm backing them to leave with all 3 points

Sunderland were in free fall under Steve Bruce but the appointment of Martin O Neill has sparked a revival that has seen them rise from 17th to a comfortable position of 8th going into this game. They've also progressed to the last 16 of the FA Cup where ironically they face Arsenal, also at home. It's fair to say the removal of one manager for another has had the exact result the powers that be at the stadium of light had hoped for and I see no danger for the black cats for the remainder of the 2012 season

Arsenal have been falling further behind the top teams in the last few seasons and have a real battle on their hands this year if they're to reach the top 4 positions and entry into next years Champions League, which is the holy grail for all top teams. Failure to catch Chelsea for 4th position would be a serious blow for Wenger and the Gunners faithful

Whilst I'm not convinced if they can finish in the top 4 I do feel they can win this game on Saturday. The main failure of Arsenal this seaosn has been defensively but they have managed to tighten up in their last 2 games conceeding just 1 with a clean sheet in their last away game at Bolton being only their 3rd from 12 away games and first since the start of December, so that will have provided some degree of encouragement

Goalscoring hasn't been a problem on the road with 22 recorded from 12 games and scoring at least twice in 7 of those 12 fixtures so if that trend continues and they keep things reasonably tight with no more than 1 goal conceeded then I feel they can win here

Sunderland offcourse have been on a great run since O Neill took up the reigns with only 2 defeats from 13 which both came on the road to Spurs & Chelsea. At home since he took over they've played 5 Premiership games and won 4, drawing 1 so he's certainly lifted the doom and gloom around the club that existed under Bruce towards the end of his tenure

However, what O Neill has done here by in large is win the games he needs to win but I just feel Arsenal will have too much firepower and the home side will struggle to keep them out for the 90 minutes and will need to score at least once to get anything form the game and even then it may not be enough. I'm not convinced Sunderland have sufficient attacking options to score more than 1 here and I fancy Arsenal to win the game

Arsenal are at a critical stage of their season as they chase a top 4 finish and AC Milan are also on the horizon now in the Champions League so it's vital they continue to win games for their confidence and with RVP in fantastic form I like their chances in this one

Arsenal to win is my choice here... Good Luck

1

Supporters

1. luckygirl34

Posted on: 09.02.2012, 17.47 CET (Viewed: 310 times)
Match starts on: February 11, 2012

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