12 Jun 2019
By the time Brighton kick off against Arsenal on Sunday, the Seagulls may have ensured their Premier League status for another season.
Much depends on whether Cardiff City can beat visiting Crystal Palace 24 hours earlier. Cardiff are third from bottom, four points behind Brighton, with two games to play. The Bluebirds also have a vastly inferior goal difference (minus 14 goals).
Sunday’s clash at the Emirates Stadium could be a dead rubber as far as Chris Hughton’s side are concerned, but given that Palace fans would not mind if Brighton are left sweating until the last game of the season, and having already secured their top-flight status for another season, the 12th-placed Eagles have little to play for. Brighton are still 20/1 to be relegated, however.
Arsenal start the weekend in fifth place following their third successive Premier League defeat – a 3-0 reverse at Leicester which keeps them two points behind fourth-placed Chelsea and four adrift of third-placed Tottenham, who travel to Bournemouth on Saturday.
Arsenal could still reach next season’s Champions League should they lift the Europa League and their semi-final second-leg takes place on Thursday, May 9.
The Gunners are 9/4 to secure a top-four Premier League spot at the end of the season and are 2/1 to win the Europa League. Unai Emery’s side have to travel to Burnley next weekend and by then they may already know their top-four fate.
Three successive defeats against Crystal Palace, Wolves and Leicester means that Arsenal are already relying on Chelsea to slip up – and the consequences of failing to reach the Champions League could be dire.
They are already projected to make an operating loss of over £70million this season due to falling revenues and increased costs.
With no significant player sales on the horizon and owner Stan Kroenke not known for investing his own money, the Emery may have around a £50m budget after commercial deals with adidas and Emirates are taken into consideration.
That may not be enough to bring in the players the Spaniard would like.
Beating Brighton – they are 2/5 to win – and Burnley next week may not be enough, so the Europa League could be the easiest route to riches – and Emery may well rest players on Sunday as a result.
TEAM NEWS
Arsenal have said farewell to Aaron Ramsey. The midfielder will miss the rest of the season with a hamstring injury and he faces two months on the sidelines before heading to Juventus.
Emery used his press conference ahead of the Valencia clash to praise the 28-year-old Welshman.
He said: “Aaron played so many years here, he is so important for the club and the players because he did so much for the new players.
“He signed for Juventus but he is still a professional and always fought for the club. Some other players might stop fighting – but he loves this club so he stayed 100 per cent. He has a great mentality. I will miss him a lot – we have good memories.”
The Gunners will again make a switch in goal as Europa League keeper Petr Cech makes way for German international Bernd Leno, and there could be some changes in defence, with Shkodran Mustafi, as well as Konstantinos Mavropanos considered.
Laurent Koscielny was rested against Leicester, but could return. Nacho Monreal was a doubt for Thursday’s clash with Valencia and may not be rushed back.
Brighton, who announced this week that Cameroon defender Gaetan Bong has signed a new one-year deal at the Amex, have few injury concerns ahead of this vital clash. They are 8/1 to win at the Emirates Stadium.
ARSENAL TO HAND ALBION ANOTHER DEFEAT?
This has been a typically difficult second season in the Premier League for Brighton, who have endured a miserable run which has yielded just two wins in 16 games in 2019.
They lost key players such as Pascal Gross and Jose Izquierdo to injury at important times and they have managed just one goal in the last seven league games – that coming in last Saturday’s 1-1 draw with Newcastle.
Brighton host a Manchester City side chasing the title next weekend, while Cardiff will travel to Manchester United, who could well have been eliminated from the top-four fight by then.
So there is plenty on the line for Hughton’s Albion, who have never won at Arsenal’s ground in seven previous attempts, losing six of them. They have managed one solitary draw there – a goalless affair in January 1982 – and the draw is on offer at 15/4 this time.
They could not have caught Arsenal at a better time, though. The Gunners have shipped three goals in each of their last three Premier League games and have lost four of their last five. Brighton are 4/5 to score a goal (over 0.5 goals), something they have done just twice in seven visits. The Gunners are 10/11 to keep a clean sheet.
Six of the last seven meetings have seen both sides score, however, and it is 19/20 for both sides to find the net, and 21/10 for Arsenal to win but concede.
Brighton are unbeaten in the last two previous meetings, having secured a 1-1 draw at the Amex on Boxing Day, with Jurgen Locadia levelling for the hosts after Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang opened the scoring.
Aubameyang was also on target for the Gunners in their 2-1 defeat at Brighton in March 2018, and he is one player who will want to be at his best on Sunday, as the Gabon striker is in the running to be the Premier League’s top scorer. He is 4/6 to score at any time and 7/2 to win the Golden Boot.
Aubameyang, who has 19 goals – two fewer than Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah and one less than Manchester City’s Sergio Aguero and Liverpool’s Sadio Mane – is 13/5 to score two or more and 17/2 to net a hat-trick against the Albion.
To see all the odds on this clash, click here.
