Arsenal vs. Liverpool: Team News, Predicted Lineups, Live Stream, TV Info
Arsenal and Liverpool meet at the Emirates Stadium in what will be the biggest game of both of their Premier League campaigns thus far.
This will be a good measure of each of their ambitions for 2014/15. If Liverpool want to break back into the top four, they must demonstrate that they can beat the likes of the Gunners. Meanwhile, if Arsene Wenger’s men have serious hopes of mounting a title challenge, this is the sort of game they need to win convincingly.
Liverpool have begun the stronger of the two sides, winning both their opening games and keeping clean sheets in the process. For a team who have been undone by defensive troubles in the past, that solid start is a real boost. If Arsenal’s attacking play stutters as it did on the opening day against West Ham, they could be in for a difficult evening’s work.
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Date: Monday August 24
Time: 8 p.m. BST, 3 p.m. ET
Location: Emirates Stadium, London
Television coverage: Sky Sports 1 / Sky Sports 1 HD (UK); NBCSN (U.S.)
Streaming: Sky Go (UK)
Form
Arsenal
L (0-2) vs. West Ham
W (1-2) vs. Crystal Palace
Liverpool
W (0-1) vs. Stoke City
W (1-0) vs. Bournemouth
Liverpool have enjoyed a steady start to the season, while the Gunners will have to hope their loss to West Ham was nothing more than an opening-day blip. After a strong preseason, including a convincing Community Shield victory over champions Chelsea, hopes were high that Arsenal could be serious contenders this year. It’s vital they find some consistent Premier League form if they’re to turn those ambitions into a reality.
The Managers
Arsene Wenger seems to recognise that a good win for Arsenal in this fixture could eliminate some of the doubts created by the opening-day defeat to West Ham. He told the BBC:
"If you want to have a successful season you want to be strong at home. Normally we are strong at home. This is an opportunity to show that.
...
This is a very important game where the result will of course be vital. It's not a result that will decide our title chances but in our heads we know it's very important.
"
Wenger is right. These three points will not ultimately decide Arsenal’s fate in the title race. However, a poor result would create an insecurity that could send the team off course. The Gunners were undone by a slow start to last season, and they cannot afford a record of two defeats from their opening three league games.
That said, Brendan Rodgers seems confident that his Liverpool side could come away from the Emirates Stadium with something. He told the same website:
"We know that we've got that ability to scrap and fight as well as play good football. If we can go there and perform like we think we can and keep to our game-plan we're confident we can get a result.
If you assess Arsenal's last 10 games they've lost at home, the teams that have won have averaged four shots on target, with 43% possession. It tells you that you can go there and you don't need to dominate the ball, but you can dominate the space.
"
That suggests that he may set Liverpool up to play on the counter-attack. Arsenal tend to boss possession but can still be vulnerable to rapier counter-strikes. Liverpool have players with the speed and athleticism to hurt Arsenal in that way.
Team News
Arsenal
The likelihood is that Arsenal will retain the XI that helped them see off Crystal Palace last weekend. That will mean that Santi Cazorla continues in the centre of midfield, with Aaron Ramsey once again forced out to the right wing. It’s not his natural position, but he is able to do a job there, offering protection for Hector Bellerin as well as driving infield to support Olivier Giroud when required.
Predicted Arsenal XI (4-2-3-1): Petr Cech; Hector Bellerin, Per Mertesacker, Laurent Koscielny, Nacho Monreal; Francis Coquelin, Santi Cazorla; Aaron Ramsey, Mesut Ozil, Alexis Sanchez; Olivier Giroud
Liverpool
Rodgers’ major concern will be over Jordan Henderson. The new Liverpool skipper limped from the field during the game against Bournemouth, and this match may come too soon for him to lead the side out at the Emirates Stadium. Should that prove to be the case, Emre Can is the obvious replacement—the German has a similar ability to drive through the midfield when required.
Predicted Liverpool XI (4-2-3-1): Simon Mignolet; Nathaniel Clyne, Martin Skrtel, Dejan Lovren, Joe Gomez; James Milner, Emre Can; Adam Lallana, Coutinho, Jordon Ibe; Christian Benteke
Players to Watch
Arsenal: Mesut Ozil
Against Crystal Palace, Mesut Ozil was in absolutely sparkling form, creating chances at will. However, a justifiable criticism of Ozil is that he does not always deliver in the biggest games. In Arsenal’s first huge match of the Premier League season, it will be intriguing to see if Ozil can make his impact felt.
To do so, he will have to escape the attentions of James Milner, who is likely to snap at his ankles at every given opportunity. Ozil will have to use his positional intelligence to escape his marker if he is to find the room to weave his magic.
Liverpool: Nathaniel Clyne
The England international could yet prove to be one of the signings of the summer. In the last two years, he has developed into one of the Premier League’s most consistent full-backs, and the move to Liverpool is a step towards fulfilling his ambitions of playing regularly in the Champions League.
His performance against Arsenal will be fascinating to watch, largely because he’ll find himself directly up against the ebullient Alexis Sanchez. If Clyne can contain the Chilean, it will be a huge help to Liverpool in their attempt to overcome the Gunners.
James McNicholas is Bleacher Report's lead Arsenal correspondent and is following the club from a London base throughout 2015/16. Follow him on Twitter here.
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