West Brom vs. Arsenal: Stars Who Must Shine for Gunners in Huge EPL Showdown

With Arsenal currently sitting a mere two points out of the all-important top four in the EPL standings, Saturday's clash with West Bromwich Albion will be a huge one. While West Brom is in the upper half of the standings, it desperately needs a win as well and won't go down without a fight.

In terms of talent level, there is no doubt that the Gunners have the advantage; however, that doesn't mean anything if the squad's top guys don't perform. Arsenal has a lot of star power, so big plays are waiting to happen throughout its starting XI. That doesn't necessarily mean they'll occur against West Brom, though.

Here are the top three stars who must shine brightest in order for the Gunners to dispatch of West Brom in a crucial match on Saturday.

Santi Cazorla

Arsenal is capable of getting offensive production from many different sources, but Spanish midfielder Santi Cazorla is unquestionably the team's most dangerous weapon. Through 29 matches, Cazorla has racked up 12 goals and seven assists, and he is a constant danger opposing defenses must always account for.

There is no question that West Brom will focus much of its defensive attention on Cazorla, but he must find a way to produce regardless. Even if Cazorla is unable to create scoring chances for himself, he has to put his teammates in a position where they can do damage.

Cazorla is the lifeblood of the Gunners' offense, as pretty much everything runs through him. If West Brom is able to shut him down, it will be exceedingly difficult for Arsenal to win. When Cazorla is on his game, though, there are very few squads that can compete with the Gunners.

Lukasz Fabianski

It is no secret that Arsenal has struggled to settle on a goalkeeper this season, so, despite the enormity of Saturday's match, the start will be given to Lukasz Fabianski, according to The Guardian. Wojciech Szczesny is the de facto starter; however, he has had an up-and-down year. At this point, it appears as though manager Arsene Wenger is trying to catch lightning in a bottle.

The 27-year-old Fabianski simply hasn't lived up to the lofty expectations that have been placed on him at Arsenal, but it's amazing what a few good starts can do. The door is suddenly open a crack for Fabianski to earn more consistent playing time, so it is up to him to kick the proverbial door down and give Wenger no choice but to continue playing him.

When Fabianski is on his game, he is as talented as any keeper, but he has a history of making some pretty big mistakes. As long as Fabianski's back line is solid, and he is able to keep his concentration throughout the match, he should be able to carry the Gunners to victory. If he falters, though, things could get ugly.

Olivier Giroud

While Santi Cazorla is Arsenal's most consistent offensive force, it can be argued that Olivier Giroud is the team's most talented overall player. The issue with Giroud, however, is that he doesn't always find a way to get on the score sheet. Giroud is third on the team in goals this season with 10, and he has done a nice job as the striker up top; however, he often defers to Cazorla and is dependent upon him.

If Cazorla is taken out of the game, Giroud may not be effective either since he won't have anyone to get him the ball. There is a certain synergy between the two of them, so it is important for both of them to play well. With Theo Walcott out of action, Giroud will have to do much of the heavy lifting at forward.

Giroud has proven to be a quality addition to the Arsenal roster after coming over from the French league, and he has been paramount to their success. The Gunners and their fans won't be happy until they are in line to qualify for the Champions League, though, so Giroud needs to come through in big matches such as this one.

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