Arsenal have a tough game against Sean Dyche’s Nottingham Forest coming up.
Mikel Arteta’s side are the favourites to win the game, but his record against the former Everton boss is not great at all. He has won just four out of his 10 fixtures against him.
Dyche has suggested that he is going to park the bus against Arsenal. That is how he has always played against the big teams, but it rarely ever worked when he faced the Gunners in the past.
The Forest manager has now revealed the reason why – Arsene Wenger.
Where does Arsene Wenger rank among the Premier League’s greatest managers?
Sean Dyche says his terrible record against Arsenal in the past was because of Arsene Wenger
Wenger is one of the greatest managers football has ever seen.
The legendary Frenchman spent over two decades at Arsenal, and he is the reason why the Gunners are such a huge brand today.
Wenger enjoyed a lot of success in the first half of his tenure, but he only won the FA Cup a few times in the Emirates Stadium era.
Arsenal’s record against the bigger teams in his latter years was an issue, but the Gunners usually blew the smaller clubs away.
Dyche experienced that first-hand. His Burnley side faced Wenger’s Arsenal seven times and lost all of them, conceding 15 and scoring just once.
Since then, Dyche’s teams have picked up points in six out of the next 13 games against the Gunners, which shows great improvement.
When asked what changed, the Forest boss replied, as relayed on HaytersTV: “That was that Arsene Wenger fella!
“He was alright, you know? He did quite well, him.”
What changes would you make to our predicted Arsenal XI vs Nottingham Forest?
Arsenal don’t have Arsene Wenger anymore but they can still beat Sean Dyche’s Nottingham Forest
It has been over seven years since Wenger left Arsenal.
His successor, Unai Emery, was a disaster at the Emirates, but Arteta has since stabilised the ship and transformed the Gunners into one of the best sides in the world.
Facing Dyche’s Nottingham Forest will be a tricky test for Arsenal, especially as it is away from home. The hosts will try to frustrate the Gunners with a low block from the very first minute.
However, the Premier League leaders have improved against sides that defend deep this season, and if they play at their usual level, they should be able to get the job done.
We think Martin Odegaard will be key to Arsenal getting a win on Saturday.
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