Liverpool v Arsenal
Sunday 21st December, 16.00
Anfield
The standout fixture of this weekend’s Premier League action sees low-flying Liverpool take on the inconsistent Arsenal.
Could this be Brendan Rodgers’ last chance to save his job? If his team lose this game – and other results go against them – Liverpool could find themselves sat in 13th place in the Premier League at Christmas, which is surely a record low for a club with such a fine tradition.
Arsene Wenger is a man under fire too, and with the ongoing saga concerning Jurgen Klopp’s position at Borussia Dortmund – a man tipped to replace the Frenchman – he’ll be hoping for a good result on Sunday to keep the wolves at bay a while longer.
Form
You would expect Rodgers to put out a more attacking team than that the one that surrendered so feebly at Old Trafford on Sunday, although his men are suffering something of a crisis of confidence as their home form testifies (W-D-L-W-D). A return of eight points from a possible fifteen is not going to warm the cockles around Anfield way.
That being said, Arsenal are in no better shape themselves on the road: L-W-L-W-L has a lovely symmetry to it, but doesn’t fill anyone with confidence.
Goals
This game has a bit of a stalemate written all over it:
Liverpool: Average For 0.9, Average Against 0.8.
Arsenal: Average For 1.5, Average Against 1.3.
So as you can see, nobody is expecting a six-goal thriller come Sunday tea time. This is also supported by the average Under 2.5 Goals stats, with Liverpool at 62.5% and Arsenal 50%.
With this in mind, either a 1-1 draw or a margin of +1 either way should be your festive punt of choice here.
Corners
There’s not much to get excited about in the corners market either unfortunately:
Liverpool: Average For 6.4, Average Against 5.
Arsenal: Average For 5.8, Average Against 3.9.
It really is nip and tuck if you like a flutter on corners and cards, with the Under 10.5 corners data (Liverpool 62.5%, Arsenal 50%) showing that this might be the way to go.
Cards
The cards stats for these two sides is a bit more illuminating, and in Arsenal’s case is downright surprising:
Liverpool: Average Points For 16.3, Average Against 23.8.
Arsenal: Average Points for 31.9, Average Against 27.5.
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