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Arsenal will look to recover from their defeat against Manchester City on Sunday when they travel to take on Aston Villa at Villa Park on Wednesday.
David Silva’s goal mid-way through the second half was enough to bring Arsenal’s ten game winning streak to an abrupt halt, prompting gunners boss Arsene Wenger to admit that that his side’s chances of winning the tile this year were over.
Now their target for this season has to be a top four finish, and having lost ground to the likes of Tottenham and Chelsea, Arsenal will be desperate to pick up a win that will stand them in good stead ahead of the Christmas fixture list and the new year.
Aston Villa meanwhile go into the game after an insipid performance that saw them go down with a whimper against Liverpool on Sunday.
The Villa Park faithful were left flat after the Reds swept to a 2-0 lead inside fifteen minutes with very little in the way of a response from Alex McLeish’s side to give the home fans to cheer about.
McLeish’s weekend got even worse after his star striker, Darren Bent, was spotted out shopping while his team-mates were stumbling to defeat having been ruled out of the game through injury.
Alex McLeish’s side meanwhile go into the game fresh on the back of another insipid performance that led to defeat against Liverpool, and the Scot will be hoping for something of a response from his players when they take to the field on Wednesday.
Darren Bent caused a stir after being caught out shopping while Villa were losing to Liverpool on Sunday but could be fit to feature, while Gabriel Agbonlahor is available after being suspended.
Bent will look to make up for his faux pas over the weekend against Arsenal, however his chances of making the game hangs in the balance as he continues to struggle with a thigh injury.
There was some good news for McLeish however with Gabriel Agbonlahor retuning to the fold having served a suspension, however Shay Given is out until the new year with a hamstring injury.
Arsenal’s defensive injury woes took a turn for the worst in the defeat against City after Johan Djourou limped off and is sidelined for three weeks, however Keiran Gibbs could make a comeback from injury to ease Wenger’s full-back crisis.
Match Winner
With Aston Vila’s woeful performances against top four sides in recent months it comes as no surprise that the visitors are the favourite for the game.
The home side are placed at 5.00 (4/1) with BetFred to take the win while the Gunners are 1.80 (4/5) with Paddy Power.
The draw is 3.75 (11/4) with Paddy Power.
First Goalscorer
Robin Van Persie is perhaps the most in-form striker in the country at the moment and the Dutchman leads the first goalscorer market.
Van Persie is 4.50 (7/2) with SportingBet to open the scoring against Villa, while it says something about the threat the home side are likely to pose that Marouane Chamakh is second favourite despite rarely getting a game at 7.50 (13/2) with BlueSQ.
Darren Bent could miss the game but still represents Villa’s best chance to open the scoring at 8.00 (7/1) with Paddy Power.
Recommended Bets
First Goalscorer: Robin Van Persie, 4.50 (7/2) SportingBet
Correct score: 2-0 Arsenal, 10.00 (9/1) Ladbrokes
