English Premier League – Match Preview: Arsenal versus West Bromwich Albion
Arsenal take on West Bromwich Albion at the Emirates Stadium in a true David versus Goliath version of the weekend’s round of English Premier League matches. It has been a better than expected start to the English Premier League season
for West Bromwich Albion, who qualified for promotion to the Premier League after attaining a top six finish in the Championship i.e. the second division of English football.
On their promotion, West Brom were viewed by many as the perennial yo-yo club. A football club that earns promotion to the big boys league and then quickly realizes that it is not good enough for the big time by losing too many matches,
and then winning a few along the way to relegation back to the chasm of the Championship.
Bromwich Albion played their first match of the season against Chelsea F.C at the Stamford bridge and quite predictably the English champions fired six goals past the despairing West Brom defence on their way to a six nil victory.
In their second match, Bromwich faced Sunderland at the Hawthorns stadium i.e. their home ground. Against Sunderland, West Brom gave a good account of themselves as they ended up as eventual winners by one goal to nil.
It was their first in the English Premiership and the three points that they obtained from the fixture gave them the confidence to go on and almost earn a draw against Liverpool at Anfield. However, the reds won the match 1-0, thanks
to a marvellous strike from their striker, Fernando Torres. Tottenham visited the Hawthorns stadium next to battle against Bromwich Albion and that match ended with the score line at one all. It was a matter of a point earned for West Brom rather than two
lost as Tottenham are one of the biggest teams in the English Premier League.
In their latest match against their own city rivals, Birmingham City, West Brom won comprehensively by scoring three goals and only conceding a single goal in reply. A 3-1 victory was a well deserved one for Roberto Di Matteo’s side
who has been criticized for being too open in their approach towards the matches in the English Premier League. Currently 10th in the English Premier League table with seven points from five matches and a goal difference of negative four, West Brom
will be looking to pull off an upset when they visit the Gunners.
On the other hand, Arsenal are currently second in the English Premier League level on eleven points from five league games with Manchester United. The Gunners are ahead on goal difference when compared to the Red Devils in the third
place as Arsene’s men have scored fourteen goals while conceding just four. Arsenal will be favourites to win this match as it is being played at their home ground i.e. The Emirates Stadium. They will also be firing on cylinders after beating Tottenham by
four goals to one in their mid-week Carling Cup tie at the White Hart Lane.
However, the gunners will be without their captain and creative midfielder, Cesc Fabregas. Fabregas suffered an ankle injury during Arsenal’s one all draw at the Stadium of Light against Sunderland. All in all Arsenal have won three
of their five matches and drawn only two so far in the 2010-2011 English Premier League season. Arsene Wenger is likely to deploy a relatively weak side against West Bromwich Albion as Arsenal have UEFA Champions League commitments in the up-coming week.
In their last eight matches with West Bromwich Albion, Arsenal have won six times while one match has ended in a draw and one in a Bromwich Albion win. West Brom’s last win against Arsenal came way back in the 2005-2006 English Premier
League season. It is unlikely that the Baggies will blow any smoke into the Gunners path as Arsenal look to maintain their perfect home record so far in the English league season.
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