Arsenal host Bournemouth in the Premier League on Saturday afternoon, and predictions have been made ahead of the clash.
Liverpool were crowned champions last weekend after thrashing Tottenham 5-1 at Anfield, meaning the Gunners no longer have silverware to play for domestically this season.
PSG beat Arsenal in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final tie at the Emirates in midweek, with the second leg in Paris on Wednesday awaiting Mikel Arteta’s men.
The Spaniard is likely to heavily rotate for the game against the Cherries, as he looks to protect his squad ahead of the European showdown at the Parc des Princes.
Arsenal lost the reverse fixture 2-0 at the Vitality Stadium in October, and Andoni Iraola’s side will no doubt be eager to do the double over the North Londoners for the first time ever in the Premier League.
- READ MORE: What PSG’s players privately felt about Arsenal before beating them in the first leg at the Emirates
Paul Merson thinks Arsenal will beat Bournemouth despite Mikel Arteta’s changes
Arteta has rotated heavily in recent league matches, and he’s likely to do the same against Bournemouth.
The Arsenal boss has clearly decided that the Champions League is the priority, and he’ll merely be using the league fixtures to build minutes for certain players.
Paul Merson thinks Arteta will make some changes, although he believes that the likes of Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka could actually start as the head coach looks to secure all three points.
Writing for Sportskeeda, the pundit said: “It’s a nothing game for Arsenal. If Manchester City, Newcastle, Chelsea and Nottingham Forest win this weekend, Arsenal not winning against Bournemouth will be a problem.
“Suddenly, that second-place will start to come under threat and the chasing pack and Arsenal don’t want that.
“Arsenal must beat Bournemouth this weekend to stand any chance of turning things around against PSG. So they could be forced to start the likes of Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice among others once again.
“I think they will get the job done this weekend.”
Score prediction: Arsenal 2-1 Bournemouth
Chris Sutton makes Arsenal vs Bournemouth Prediction
Kieran Tierney could come in at left-back for Arsenal, while the likes of Oleksandr Zinchenko, Ethan Nwaneri and Raheem Sterling could all get a look in.
Bournemouth have suffered a dip in form in recent weeks, winning one of their last eleven games in all competitions in normal time.
However, unlike Merson, Chris Sutton is convinced Arsenal will drop yet more points this weekend.
Writing for BBC Sport, he said: “We know how dangerous Bournemouth are, because they beat Arsenal in October, and if Mikel Arteta rests players, then this game becomes even harder for the Gunners.
“It’s a tricky situation for Arteta, because he will want to head to Paris St-Germain for the second leg of their Champions League semi-final with a bit of momentum, but he has got to balance that with the risk of injury to his key players.
“Bournemouth’s form has improved of late, and the circumstances mean they definitely have a decent chance of doing the double over Arsenal this season.
“This all boils down to what the Arsenal team is, so it is difficult to make a call without knowing that, but they are at home and even if they are not at full strength then I can still see them getting a draw.”
Score prediction: Arsenal 1-1 Bournemouth
Arsenal should be able to scrape past the south coast outfit regardless of the team they put out, although Iraola’s men certainly have something to play for.
Bournemouth will still have European dreams, and eighth place in the Premier League could yet secure them a Europa Conference League spot.
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