6 Reasons Why Aston Villa Will Beat Arsenal on Opening Day

Aston Villa travel to the Emirates Stadium to face Arsenal on the opening day of the new Premier League season looking for an all-important win as they aim to put last season's horror show behind them.

Villa narrowly escaped relegation, eventually finishing 16th, in Paul Lambert's first season in charge of the Villans. This time, however, the Scotsman will be looking for a much higher finish.

Nobody is expecting miracles but Villa fans have high expectations for their once-great club; a club that, in 1982, was crowned Champions of Europe.

But the claret and blue outfit face one of the calendar's toughest fixtures on the opening day of the season, with Arsenal not a club they've fared well against in recent seasons.

But with a new day—and a new Christian Benteke contract—comes new hope, and here are six reasons to believe Aston Villa will beat Arsenal.

Christian Benteke

Yup, you guessed it. The main reason why Villa will go to the Emirates and come away with all three points is because of one man: Christian Benteke.

Now, I know it's not a smart idea to put all your hopes in the arms, or should I say boots, of one man, but the Belgian forward is not just any man. He was the saviour of the Midlands-based club last season, single-handedly scoring the goals that saved Villa from relegation to the Championship.

The 22-year-old bagged 19 league goals last campaign—23 in all competitions—and will look to get off to a flyer against the Gunners after notching a brace against La Liga side Malaga during Villa's final preseason fixture. 

Benteke is aware of the expectations surrounding this season's performance, especially after extending his Villa contract until 2017, but he has stated that he is more than ready to lead Villa's line throughout the 2013-14 campaign.

He told Villa's official site:

"

As a striker, a lot of people are waiting for me. The fans are waiting for me. So the pressure is going to be bigger around me but this is football and I accept that.

I can take that. I am young. I am confident. This is part of football. You have to be able to handle this pressure. This is the life I have chosen so I am happy to take this on. I love it.

Last season was a very good first season for me. I was happy with it. But now it's behind me. I have to look forward and try to do the same or even better.

I am excited about the new season. I can't wait for it to start. I am looking forward to it.

"

Arsenal's Poor Start to Previous Seasons

There's no doubt about it, Arsenal are hot favourites to win this fixture. And why wouldn't they be? They've enjoyed tremendous success over Villa in recent years and are odds-on to send Villa back to the Midlands with their tails tucked firmly between their legs.

SkyBet have them clear favourites at 2/5.

Despite their overwhelming record against Villa, with the Gunners' win ratio twice that of Villa's on home ground, Arsene Wenger's men have struggled on the opening day in the past three seasons. And this is something Villa will surely look to exploit on Saturday.

Arsenal have amassed just three points in the previous three seasons from their combined three fixtures.

They drew 1-1 with Liverpool in 2010/11 and have since failed to score on the opening day, drawing 0-0 away to Newcastle in and then 0-0 at home to Sunderland last year.

In contrast, Villa have fared better—if only slightly—over the course of the past three campaigns, yielding four points.

They did lose 1-0 away to West Ham last season but picked up a point in a stalemate against Fulham in 2011/12 following a comprehensive opening day 3-0 win over West Ham in 2010/11.

No Pressure on Villa to Win

Let's face it, Arsenal should win this game. They're favourite with the bookies, favourite with Arsenal fans and are, too, favourite with most Villa fans. And that is exactly why Arsenal could well go on to lose this game.

There is very little pressure on the away side—apart from Villa fans wanting to see an improvement from last season, which can't be too hard. Quite frankly, Villa are expected to lose. But this could play into their hands.

Lambert's men have a fresh slate. Every team this weekend will go in on a level playing field. Everybody starts on 0 points, so this will afford the luxury of playing without pressure and without fear of relegation— unless they take a mauling like they did against Chelsea last year, then the fears of another season battling it out at the bottom will come flooding back. 

Arsenal, however, need to get off to a good start. They know full well that a poor performance on the opening day will invite the media vultures to circle above. Sensationalist headlines surrounding their lack of trophies since 2005 will ensue and another season where a fight for fourth spot is all that awaits.

Best not lose it then, eh, Arsenal?

Arsenal's Injury Problem

Arsenal have a number of key figures that will miss the season opener—something that will not help them as they come up against a full-strength Villa side.

Wales midfielder Aaron Ramsey, who looked set to feature after being called up to Welsh national side to face Republic of Ireland in a friendly on Wednesday, has been ruled out of both the international as well as the match against Villa with an ankle injury. 

Ramsay's fellow midfielder and 'future England captain,' as described by former England manager Fabio Capello, Jack Wilshere, also looks set to miss the fixture. 

Wilshere's absence, should he not recover in time to make the squad, will be a major concern to manager Wenger with the youngster often running the show from the heart of midfield.

Another big miss, considering the form of Villa striker Christian Benteke, will be that of Thomas Vermaelen at centre-back. The Daily Mail reported that the Belgian defender would not feature for Arsenal at the start of the season after aggravating a back injury. 

Attempting to plug the gap left by Vermaelen is likely to be right full-back Bacary Sagna, who is often praised for his attacking prowess but criticised for his lack of defensive discipline. The French defender told Sky Sports that he is more than happy to "fill-in" at centre-half:

"

Playing at centre-back started last season. Laurent Koscielny was injured at Sunderland and the coach came to me asking if I wanted to play centre-back because we had no cover.

I just went for it and tried to adapt as quickly as possible.

On the pitch everything is different but it's okay for me. It's different but I love learning.

I see myself as a right-back but if I have to cover sometimes or play centre-back, I will do it for the club, my team and myself as well.

"

No Higuain, No Suarez, No Chance

In recent months, Arsenal have been linked to a number of strikers from around the world as they look to add more fire power ahead of the Premier League season.

Gonzalo Higuain was 'certain' to join the North London outfit but later snubbed them for Napoli, as The Daily Mail reported. 

Liverpool's Luis Suarez has also been linked with the Gunners in what has become one of the summer's more prolonged transfer stories. 

Wenger has recently stated that his side are “a bit thin” and that they could do with signing a striker.

In an interview with the Daily Mail, Wenger said:

"

I think the problem is the strength of the squad. Today is one game we are going to play 55 games. We are maybe a bit thin squad wise to go through the whole season.

The players now go on international duty and come back on Thursday so it will be very short time to prepare for our first game on Saturday.

We have some big games in front of us. We play Aston Villa and then the Champions League after that so it’s important we don’t lose players now.

"

If Arsenal go into the fixture without adding to their attacking options then French striker Olivier Giroud will be the man in charge of beating Villa keeper Brad Guzan.

Giroud's first season in the Premier League wasn't all too impressive and, although he did reach double figures, Villa will be hopeful of stifling the striker's threat.

Villa's New-Look Defence

Last but certainly not least, Villa's new defensive line-up, which is far more resolute compared to last year's "sieve", is another reason why the Birmingham-based side will come away from the Emirates with all three points.

Villa boss Lambert has strengthened his side considerably this summer—bringing in six new players. And two of those players are certain to help his side to shore-up their defence. A defence that leaked an astounding 69 goals last season, leaving them with a goal difference of -22 for the 2012-13 Premier League season.

Danish defender Jores Okore, who featured in my list of Villa players to look out for this season, is a huge signing. The strong, pacy and ambitious defender will play alongside Villa captain and Dutch international Ron Vlaar in what should be a formidable partnership. 

Spanish full-back Antonio Luna, whilst relatively young, will bring some experience to a side which severely lacked in that department last year. The Spanish defender was signed from Sevilla and, with La Liga experience under his belt, helped Villa to an impressive preseason where they kept a number of clean sheets—something of a rarity during the 2012/13 season.