Nottingham Forest lock horns with Arsenal
Returning to the stadium where their Premier League title dreams crashed and burned last season, Arsenal lock horns with Nottingham Forest at the City Ground on Tuesday evening.
The Gunners returned to winning and scoring ways with a 5-0 battering of Crystal Palace last weekend, while Nuno Espirito Santo‘s side were forced to accept a 0-0 draw with Bristol City in Friday’s FA Cup tie.
Since taking over at Nottingham Forest, Nuno Espirito Santo has overseen a spate of end-to-end, goal-packed affairs in the Forest dugout, with a staggering 26 strikes flying in during his opening six fixtures at the helm.
Returning from Dubai with a shiny new pair of shooting boots, Arsenal consigned their previous attacking woes to history with a five-star performance against lowly London rivals Crystal Palace.
Question marks hang over the heads of Rice and Gabriel – two of Arsenal’s most influential performers in both boxes – hardly makes for ideal preparation for the Gunners, whose recent trips to the City Ground have proven unfruitful.
However, Forest’s wealth of absentees may have finally caught up to them against Bristol City, and they could prove easy pickings for a re-energised Arsenal team, who have their attacking confidende back and should enjoy at least 24 hours in second place.
Credit: sportsmole.co.uk
Jordan Ayew’s Crystal Palace welcome Sheffield United
Both aiming to bounce back from shipping five goals last time out, Premier League strugglers Crystal Palace and Sheffield United meet at Selhurst Park today. While Palace still sit five points clear of the drop zone, the Blades are rock-bottom and have yet to win away from home.
Following a dismal 5-0 defeat to Arsenal in their most recent outing, Crystal Palace have won just one of their last 10 Premier League matches, and dismay with both the club ownership and first-team management has been made apparent by frustrated Eagles fans.
Palace have won their last three Premier League games against Tuesday’s opponents, keeping a clean sheet on each occasion – including a 1-0 victory in this season’s reverse fixture: Hodgson knows extending that streak is all but essential if he is to keep his place in the Selhurst Park hotseat. Jordan Ayew is available again after Ghana’s Africa Cup of Nations campaign ended in the group stage.
Not only have Sheffield United won on just one of their last six league visits to Selhurst Park, but they travel there this time around having endured a miserable run of results on the road.
Sure to be an intense encounter, with both sides scrapping for survival, there may be little to choose between two teams that have been leaking goals at an alarming rate. A score-draw is the most likely outcome at Selhurst Park, where the disgruntled home fans will witness another frustrating result.
Credit: sportsmole.co.uk
High-flying Aston Villa take on Newcastle United
Two teams intent on unnerving the Premier League’s elite clash at Villa Park on Tuesday, as high-flying Aston Villa take on last season’s surprise package Newcastle United.
While Villa still occupy a place inside the top four despite a slight downturn in results, their ailing visitors could slip into the bottom half if they lose again in midweek.
Emery has forged an attacking outfit, but their recent rise has also been based on defensive solidity: they have conceded just nine times in the first half of top-flight matches this term, with no side shipping fewer before the break.
Unbeaten in their last six home games against Newcastle United, Villa have won the last four in a row without conceding. Having last lost to the Toon as hosts in September 2013, they will now aim to keep that streak going and also gain revenge for their woeful opening-day defeat on Tyneside.
Following that spectacular 5-1 success back in August, Newcastle are now looking to complete a Premier League double over Aston Villa for the first time in a decade.
However, the Magpies will arrive in the second city having lost their last four Premier League matches – conceding at least three goals in each of the last three – while plummeting down to 10th place in the table.
Neither side has been at their best in recent weeks, with Villa’s goal count slowing significantly and Newcastle’s back four being exploited on several occasions. Both have benefited from a recent break, so it should be a close contest played at full throttle, with little to choose between them.
Credit: sportsmole.co.uk
