by Ian S. Palmer
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Arsenal will be heading to Birmingham this weekend to take on Aston Villa at Villa Park on Sunday, December 13 in an important English Premier League showdown for each club. Arsenal is coming off of a huge 3-0 win Greece on Wednesday where they beat Olympiakos 3-0 in the European Champions League. The victory, which was powered by three goals from French international striker Olivier Giroud, enabled the Gunners to advance to the round-of-16 stage once again. Aston Villa’s last match was a 1-1 away draw on the south coast against Southampton.
Aston Villa vs Arsenal – Pinnacle SOCCER BETTING LINE:
- Pinnacle currently lists Arsenal as the favorites at -166 with Aston Villa +524 and a draw at +324
Aston Villa vs Arsenal – Head to Head
- The Gunners beat Villa 5-0 at home last season and 3-0 on the road and also shut them out 4-0 in the FA Cup Final. Villa is winless against Arsenal in their past 16 home clashes with Arsenal winning four of the past five. Villa’s last home win against the Gunners came back in 1998 when they downed them 3-2 in league play. Overall, these two sides have met each other 191 times in the past with Arsenal winning 80, losing 66 and drawing the other 45. Villa has one just once in the last 10 meetings which came in August of 2013 in London.
Arsenal enters the weekend in second place with 30 points from nine wins, three draws and three losses. They’ve scored 27 goals and allowed 13 against. They managed to down Sunderland 3-1 at home in their last league contest. Aston Villa is dead last in the league in 20th place with just six points on the season. They’ve managed just one win, three draws and 11 defeats with 13 goals scored and 28 conceded. Villa is seven points behind 17th-place Bournemouth and from safety out of the relegation zone. Villa has been terrible at home this season as they’re winless with a pair of draws and five defeats. They’ve scored five goals at Villa Park and allowed 10 against.
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The reading just gets worse for Villa fans since they’re winless in their past 10 outings in all competitions with eight losses and two draws to their name. But if there is a bright side for new manager Remi Garde it’s the fact that the team has two draws in their past four fixtures. Their last Premier League triumph took place in May, which dates back to last season. However, draws won’t do Villa any good if they hope to climb out of the relegation zone. They need wins and they need them soon. They’ve lost four of the past five at home and were downed 3-2 by newly-promoted Watford in their last match at Villa Park.
Arsenal enters the weekend just two points behind league-leading Leicester City. They’ve won five games on the road this season to go with one draw and two defeats. The Gunners have outscored their opponents 16-8 in their away matches. The London team is on a four-game unbeaten streak in all competitions with three wins and a draw. They were winless in their past three away outings until beating Olympiakos on Wednesday though and were held to a 1-1 draw by newly-promoted Norwich City on their last Premier League road trip.
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Aston Villa is expected to be without defender Micah Richards, Jose Angel Crespo, Gary Gardner and Jordan Amavi while Carlos Sanchez is expected to be in the lineup. Once again, Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger will be without the services of several key players due to injuries. These include midfielders Mikel Arteta, Santi Cazorla, Jack Wilshere, Tomas Rosicky, and forwards Alexis Sanchez and Danny Welbeck.
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