With the feelgood factor of Monday’s win at Old Trafford still fresh in hearts and minds, the Gunners will want to utilise that momentum with the bread and butter of three Premier League points against West Ham on Saturday.
But Arsenal should be wary, West Ham have not been an easy opponent for many teams this season, and Allardyce is perfectly capable of organising a side to frustrate and nullify.
At White Hart Lane, Allardyce played a three man midfield that sat very close to the centre halves, which funnelled much of Spurs’ play wide and suffocated Tottenham’s playmakers and I would not bet against a repeat of that tactic at the Emirates.
West Ham will probably look to nullify Özil, Cazorla and Alexis centrally. With Chamberlain injured, this could therefore be the game to utilise Walcott’s threat from wide.
In the jockey for the top 4 positions, the top six are beginning to break away from the rest; Liverpool, Spurs, United and Arsenal are all in relatively good form. Arsene Wenger will have checked this off as three very attainable points. Allardyce will have other ideas and should they come to fruition, he will be very vocal about what they were too.
Vital Quotes:
Arsene Wenger looks forward to welcoming Alex Song back to the Emirates and says he is still in little doubt as to the Cameroonian’s quality, ‘West Ham has had a very good start and he was one of the most influential players there with Sakho, Valencia and the repositioning of Downing,” Wenger said.
“Kouyate has done very well with Song they were a good pair in there and have given some good technical quality to West Ham. He looks extremely motivated and focused.
“I brought him here when he was 17 years old so I know how good he is.”
Wenger went on to outline that Tuesday night’s crunch Champions League tie against Monaco will not influence his team selection, ‘We were at a high level of fatigue because we played against Monaco, Everton, QPR, Manchester United, all very physical games.
“I will have to test medically, physically, how the players are on Friday, and I will make my decision then. The big priority is of course West Ham.’
Meanwhile, Irons gaffer Sam Allardyce is hoping that the midweek trip to Dubai will give his players an edge over the Gunners, ‘There is no doubt they will all feel the benefit of our trip to Dubai. There is absolutely no question they will improve physically and psychologically. Besides the sun and warmth, there is the relief from pressure. The players can chill out, enjoy each other`s company.
Of course, if you happen to lose the first game after returning, then someone, somewhere, will say “what a waste of money” but it`s not about that first game ? but the nine after that.’
Allardyce continued in his Evening Standard column, ‘Our recent performances should give us confidence. True, we disappointed with below-par displays in the FA Cup against West Brom and at home to Crystal Palace in the Premier League, but we should have beaten both Manchester United and Tottenham and earned at least a point against Chelsea.
‘With a little more luck ? and one or two decisions going our way ? we could well have earned eight points from our last six games and that would have been a major bonus, especially as five of those teams are above us in the table.’
Arsenal Team News:
Arsenal will be without Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain for 3-4 weeks due to a hamstring injury picked up against Manchester United. Jack Wilshere (ankle) is still not quite ready.
Mathieu Debuchy (shoulder), Gabriel (hamstring), Mikel Arteta (ankle) are out, but Mathieu Flamini returns.
Arsenal (from); Szczesny, Gibbs, Mertesacker, Koscielny, Rosicky, Özil, Giroud, Ospina, Walcott, Ramsey, Alexis, Monreal, S.Cazorla, Flamini, Chambers, Welbeck, Coquelin, Akpom, Bellerin.
Player to watch: Theo Walcott
I wrote something here http://arseblog.com/2015/03/can-theo-walcott-dance-to-arsenals-new-tune/ looking at why Walcott has been struggling for minutes of late. With Chamberlain injured and West Ham likely to try and squeeze the middle of the pitch, it looks like a decent enough game to bring Walcott into to try and stretch the visitors.
Walcott scored three times in four games upon his comeback from injury and whilst his overall contribution needs to improve, he could hold the key to breaking the Irons down and stake a claim for more regular football in the process.
West Ham United Team News:
West Ham will be without Enner Valencia, who cut his toe on a broken cup in Dubai and James Tomkins, who dislocated a shoulder in the gym on Thursday. Alex Song is battling a knee injury before determining whether he can face his old club. Carl Jenkinson is not eligible to face his parent club.
Andy Carroll (knee), Winston Reid (hamstring) and Carlton Cole (hamstring) are unavailable due to injury.
West Ham United (from); Cresswell, Nolan, Jarvis, Kouyaté, Downing, Nenê, Adriáan, Sakho, Noble, O`Brien, Collins, Amalfitano, Jaaskelainen, Song, Potts.
Player to watch: Alex Song
Provided he recovers from a knee injury, Song will hold the key to West Ham`s stifling strategy. He will play close to his centre halves and squeeze the space that the likes of Özil, Cazorla and Alexis like to occupy. Arsenal fans know he can pick a pass from deep if not pressured too. In the away match at Upton Park, Coquelin harassed him out of his stride, causing him to turn the ball over regularly and they will want to repeat that trick on Saturday.
Match Facts & Stats
Theo Walcott has scored five goals and set up three more in his last four Barclays Premier League games against West Ham.
West Ham have won none of the last 13 Barclays Premier League games against Arsenal (W0 D2 L11), losing the last eight in a row.
Olivier Giroud has scored four goals in his four Premier League appearances against West Ham.
The Hammers have scored the first goal in four of the last five Premier League meetings with Arsenal, but the Gunners have come back to win on each occasion.
Sam Allardyce has never coached a winning team away at Arsenal in the Premier League, losing seven and drawing three of his 10.
All stats provided by opta.
Ref Watch:
Chris Foy will referee this match.
Match Prediction:
I am going for Arsenal to win 2-0 with goals from Alexis and Theo Walcott.
Next Fixtures:
Arsenal are away at AS Monaco in the Champions League at 7.45pm on Tuesday night. West Ham’s next match is at home to Sunderland in the Premier League at 5.30pm next Saturday.