Cardiff vs Arsenal Preview: Recent Form, Classic Encounter, Team News & Prediction
Arsenal will make the trip to south Wales this weekend where they face Cardiff at the Cardiff City Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
Both sides have made relatively slow starts to their seasons and will be desperate to get a win under their belts. Cardiff are yet to win a game (or even score a goal) in their first season back in the Premier League, and will be looking to claim a huge scalp in front of their home fans.
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As for Arsenal, they got their first win on the board last weekend and will be looking to make it back-to-back wins as they look to stay within touching distance of the league's pace-setters.
Here's a look at what we can expect for Arsenal's clash with Cardiff on Sunday.
Recent Form
- leaving them with just two points, from a possible nine.
in succession after this weekend. While a first goal back in the top flight can't be far away, many fans looking at the fixture list might well wonder where the first three points are coming from.
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As for Unai Emery's men, they too have struggled to get their season kick started. After a 2-0 defeat at home to the reigning champions Manchester City on the opening day, the pressure really began to mount after they lost 3-2 to London rivals Chelsea in the second match.
Having been sat on zero points after two games, a lot of that pressure was relieved last weekend after their 3-1 win over West Ham, although questions are still being asked by the fans. Emery will be expect a more assured performance from his side on Sunday.
Classic Encounter
Cardiff 0-3 Arsenal (November 2013)
It was Arsenal who got the better of their opponents back in 2013 in convincing fashion. It was the former Cardiff boy Aaron Ramsey who opened the scoring for the Gunners on the half-hour mark after heading home a Mesut Ozil cross from close range.
It was a tight affair for the majority of the game with both sides creating chances. However, it was Matieu Flamini who doubled Arsenal's lead with just four minutes remaining thanks to another Ozil assist. Ramsey then made sure of the points in the second minute of injury time with a drilled effort past David Marshall.
The win meant that Arsenal actually moved seven points clear at the top of the Premier League and left Cardiff hanging dangerously above the relegation zone.
Arsenal fans would be delighted should that scoreline repeat itself come Sunday, whilst Cardiff will be doing everything they can to avoid it.
Team News
sidelined for around three months
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To make matters worse for the Bluebirds, they could also be without Junior Hoilett at the weekend. The Canadian international faces a race against time to get fit for their clash with Arsenal after he suffered a groin injury. Warnock, though, has revealed that he will not risk playing the forward if he isn't fit enough.
As for the Gunners, the big talking point during their last game was that Ozil missed out through illness. We are yet to find out whether that same illness will keep him out of the Cardiff clash or whether he has made a full recovery. Aside from that, Emery will have the same group of players to pick from as he did for their last game against West Ham.
Predicted Lineups:
Cardiff (4-5-1):
Arsenal (4-2-3-1):
Prediction
Despite losing their opening two games, Arsenal were dealt an unlucky blow having being matched against the reigning champions and the 2016/17 champions Chelsea in their first two matches of the season.
Last week against fellow early strugglers West Ham, Arsenal started slowly however once they found their feet in the game, they looked very impressive.
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They showed a glimpse of how dangerous they can be in attack, while Cardiff, although prepared to battle lack creativity and options going forward.
The Bluebirds are yet to score a Premier League goal this season, and while they will expect to make it difficult for their visitors this weekend, one would expect them to struggle against vastly superior opposition
Prediction: Cardiff 0-2 Arsenal
