West Bromwich will face Arsenal in a match of the 17th round of the Premier League. The Baggies continue their poor performance and have only one victory so far as it came against the last Sheffield United. So far in the history of the Premier League, a team that had eight or fewer points after the first 16 rounds has always been relegated. The hosts recorded a draw against Liverpool, but after that they suffered a crushing loss to Leeds with 0-5 and this will inevitably affect the players.
West Brom have conceded at least three goals in their last three home games. Home coach Sam Allardyce has lost ten of his last 12 games against Arsenal in Premier League games.
Arsenal arrives in Birmingham in good shape and two consecutive successes against Chelsea and Brighton, which gives a great deal of peace to Mikel Arteta and his boys. However, The Gunners have not been successful lately in their visits to newcomers to the elite. The Londoners have won just one of their previous six away games, with the victory coming in the first round of this season against Fulham.
Mikel Arteta had been under huge pressure earlier this month, but there have been signs of progress in the last two matches. Good sign is the number of youngsters taking their opportunities to impress.
It has been a disappointing campaign for the club thus far, having won just 20 points from their 16 matches to sit down in 13th position, but things look little brighter with a series of upcoming home fixtures against teams in the second half in the table.
Gabriel Magalhaes will again miss out, with the center back recently testing positive for coronavirus. Willian and David Luiz will be available, although it would not be a surprise to see both players on the bench as the team have performed good without them.
Bukayo Saka is expected to be in condition despite picking up a slight knock against Brighton, meaning that the Gunners could be unchanged from Brighton’s game. Alexandre Lacazette and Gabriel Martinelli would be a tough choice for third player in the attacking formation, but the former has been in excellent since his return from injury and could therefore keep his spot.
West Brom will again be without the services of Conor Townsend,Kieran Gibbs, Kyle Bartley and Hal Robson-Kanu out on injuries, while Jake Livermore still has a game left about his three-match suspension.
Expected eleven for Arsenal:
Leno; Bellerin, Mari, Holding, Tierney; Elneny, Rowe, Xhaka,; Saka, Martinelli, Aubameyang
