Arsenal v Liverpool Betting – Fabregas heading to Barcelona?

Arsenal’s Premier League title seems to have come off the rails in the very short period of three matches. After mounting an excellent charge with some great form, they hid the skids when they travelled to Villa Park for a midweek game, and could only manage a 0-0 draw. That wasn’t good enough for Arsene Wenger’s men, but it wasn’t the end of the world. The following two games however, probably were in terms of ending any hopes of winning the Premier League this season. First they crashed at home 3-1 to Manchester United, who simply outclassed them, and the subsequent defeat against Chelsea has left them trailing 7 points behind second placed Manchester United. It will be a long way back now for Wenger’s Gunners. According to Spanish media, star Midfielder Cesc Fabregas has verbally agreed to sign for Barcelona in the summer, though nothing has been confirmed by the Gunners yet.

With a war of words ensuing between Wenger and Chelsea’s Michael Ballack, who bit back against the Arsenal bosses claims that Chelsea didn’t put on a good footballing performance in their 2-0 victory over Arsenal, Wenger’s team could now be left in no man’s land. They clearly do not look good enough to keep up with the top two, but are too good to finish any lower than third. However, the picture could all change again with their midweek fixture at the Emirates against Liverpool. The Merseysiders are just five points back of Wenger’s men, and another defeat for Arsenal would put even their third place finish into some kind of jeopardy. The fixture list hasn’t been too kind to Arsenal, with a run of games back to back against the other three of the Big Four, as they are known. Wenger will need to stop the rot and get their form back, and getting three points on Wednesday, putting them 8 points ahead of the fourth placed team, would seriously hamper Liverpool’s plans of finishing in the last Champions League spot.

Liverpool have had their problems this season, and are lacking quality all over the park, but somehow they still manage to keep on picking up points. They will have been boosted by their derby day win over Everton on the weekend, and a run of games against lower opposition, has seem them climb into a surprising fourth place. For most of the season they have looked like a side which are a lot worse than a fourth place finish, but the difference this season, is that they are not comfortably back in the top four. They certainly haven’t had their own way with things, and with injuries to Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres not helping, they are more grinding out results than playing with any kind of cohesion, flair or passion.

But, credit where it is due, boss Rafa Benitez has dug really deep to get his team back into Champions League contention. There have been cries for his job, after crashing out of the FA Cup and Champions League, but he has stuck to his guns and persevered. It’s not where Liverpool want to, as fourteen points back out of first place is a monumental difference in class. Instead they find themselves leading the chasing pack for fourth spot, which includes Manchester City, Tottenham and Aston Villa. Liverpool could do themselves a huge favour by beating Arsenal, who must have their backs against the ropes right now, as the Reds will be worried about Manchester City, level on points with them, with a game in hand.

There are still clearly issues which need working out by Rafa Benitez, as highlighted in a poor 0-0 against Wolves, and the FA Cup exit to Championship side Reading. This summer could be the most important one in his Liverpool tenure, as he is going to need to sign some quality players to fill out his starting eleven. One thing they do have going for them, is their defence, which remains difficult to break down. It is going forward where they are lacking a cutting edge, looking directionless without real quality in the team. If Benitez can take the positives of the defence and build outwards for them, then that promised land of a fourth placed finish could still be achieved against the odds. It is not going to be an easy ride, but grinding out results at this point of the season, should be enough to keep the Kop happy until the summer.

BETTING STATS

Last 5 Head to Head
Liverpool 1, Arsenal 2
Arsenal 2, Liverpool 1
Liverpool 4, Arsenal 4
Arsenal 1, Liverpool 1
Liverpool 4, Arsenal 2

Last 5 Match Goals
Arsenal: 7 For, 7 Against
Liverpool: 6 For, 1 Against

Last 10 Form
Arsenal: W5, D3, L2
Liverpool: W6, D2, L2

Win Percentage
Arsenal have a 75.0 win percentage at home
Liverpool have a 33.3 win percentage away from home

Match Prices
Arsenal to win: 11/10 at Bet365
Draw: 12/5 at SkyBet
Liverpool: 3/1 at Victor Chandler

Betting Advice: Liverpool have won only 4 out of their 12 matches on the road, and Arsenal’s slick passing found a way to beat Liverpool when they met earlier this season. That should be the difference again at the Emirates. Despite their two crucial losses against Man Utd and Chelsea, Arsenal are still a good side, and have a strong home record. It will need a lot of creativity to beat Liverpool, and break them down at the back, but their passing game should be good enough. Wenger will know the importance of this game, and Arsenal need to get back on draw. Liverpool would probably be happy with a draw themselves, as it’ll show another step in the right direction. Having lost against all top three opposition already, they’d settle for an away point.
Liverpool +0.5 Asian Handicap: 5/6 at Victor Chandler