Premier League: Looking for a Home Banker? Try Arsenal vs Nottingham

Arsenal vs Nottingham Forest

It is hard to find a bigger mismatch in European football this weekend than the clash between Premier League leaders Arsenal and bottom club Nottingham Forest.

The very latest Premier League 2022 betting odds have dropped the Gunners into single figures to win the 2022/23 title at a price of 8.00.

Take a look at the usual suspects Liverpool and Chelsea at 34.00 and 35.00 respectively and it’s clear to see that, right here and right now, Mikel Arteta’s side is the biggest challenge to the dominance of Manchester City.

The Sky Blues are priced at 1.20 by the way, so Arsenal are still big outsiders. But with 11 games of the campaign gone and with 28 points in the bag, the North Londoners are deservedly top of the league.  

It doesn’t look good for Steve Cooper’s Nottingham Forest. But despite being rock bottom, they come into this game on the back of a stunning 1-0 win over Liverpool, while Arsenal dropped points for only the second time this season in a 1-1 draw away to Southampton and then followed that up with a Europa League loss to PSV Eindhoven.       

Talking Points

Arsenal hungry for goals  

Only the most critical of Gunners fans would have anything to complain about at the moment, but there is a slight concern following the disappointment in Eindhoven.

Arsenal have failed to score more than a single goal in the last five games and they drew a blank in Eindhoven, losing 2-0. It could have been even worse for the Londoners as the Dutch side had three goals disallowed.

Arteta had made plenty of changes for the game but he brought on Gabriel Jesus, Bukayo Saka, and Thomas Partey as he chased the game in the hope of confirming top spot in their group.

Arsenal are still favourites to top the group but they missed a chance to finish the job early.  

Jesus is third favourite for the Golden Boot with five goals and Saka has four goals and four assists, while Gabriel Martinelli has scored four goals. These three strikers, with Marin Odegaard and Granit Xhaka providing the ammunition, will have their sights set.    

Huge test for Nottingham’s defence

While Cooper’s team has struggled to win games on their return to the top-flight with just two narrow victories – both backs-to-the-wall 1-0’s against West Ham and Liverpool – there is a glimmer of encouragement at the County Ground and that is their recent defencive form. Over the last four games, Forest have conceded just two goals and they have picked up five invaluable points.

With the experienced Steve Cook at the heart of defence alongside Joe Worral, the visitors have a decent backbone and the combative nature of wing-back Neco Williams and midfielder Brennan Johnson ensures opposition strikers have rarely enjoyed an easy ride in recent weeks. But the Forest defence will need to play out of its skin at the Emirates.      

Nottingham are favourites for the drop at odds of 1.50 and, after spending heavily in the summer, that is not where the owners anticipated they would be after 11 games so Cooper needs to improve the club’s Premier League 2022 results as soon as possible.

He made a good start last week but this is a tough, tough league. He isn’t the only boss under pressure and with a tough task this weekend as Jesse Marsch takes his struggling Leeds United to Liverpool. Perhaps Cooper can give the Leeds manager some tips!    

A win for Forest at the Emirates would be the biggest shock of the weekend. But if they can find some space for creativity Taiwo Awoniyi, who has three goals, and creative midfielder Morgan Gibbs White are the most likely players to test the Gunners’ defence.  

History

Whichever stats you wish to choose there isn’t really a good case for Nottingham Forest. In terms of head-to-head meetings, the Gunners are seven wins to three in front, with two games drawn in all meetings in the Premier League era.

The last time the two teams met in the league back in 1999, Arsenal did the double with a 2-1 win at home and a 1-0 win in Nottingham.

Arsenal have won all five of their home league games this season while the visitors are yet to win on the road with two draws and four defeats.

And Forest’s win last week was their first in nine league matches and their second of the campaign, while Arsenal have won nine of their 11 Premier League games.

Betting Tip

The hosts are red hot favourites to win this game at SBOTOP odds of 1.19, while Forest are at 11.56 and the draw at 6.18  

Manchester City have a tricky meeting away to resurgent Leicester City on Saturday and Arteta will hope the Foxes can frustrate the Sky Blues. If not, Arsenal will need to beat Nottingham to retake top spot.    

Having won eight on the bounce, the Gunners are without a win in two and I expect a reaction on Sunday and a bad time for Forest. 

 

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