?The Britannia Stadium will be the stage as Mark Hughes’ Stoke host Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal in the Saturday evening kickoff in the penultimate weekend of this enthralling Premier League season.
The Potters are aimlessly meandering towards another mid-table finish, winning once in their last nine matches and picking only six points in that run. They are currently 13th, having earned 41 points so far.
The Gunners are still desperately clinging to the faint hope that they may reach the top four. Recent victories over Manchester United and Southampton mean they are now just three points behind Manchester City with three matches to play.
Classic Encounter
In the reverse fixture at the Emirates back on December 10th, Arsenal ran out comfortable 3-1 winners, thanks to a man of the match performance from Hector Bellerin.
Despite falling behind to a Charlie Adam penalty, the Gunners stormed back with goals from Alex Iwobi, Theo Walcott and Mesut Ozil.
Key Battle
Xherdan Shaqiri vs Hector Bellerin
Ever since Arsenal have switched to a 3-4-3 system, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has enjoyed a career renaissance in the right wing back position. He relishes in the attacking freedom the role affords him, while also providing an unlikely and unexpected defensive solidity.
He will miss out this time though because of a hamstring injury – and he could miss the FA Cup final later this month, too – meaning Hector Bellerin will step back in after a recent spell on the bench.
Bellerin will have to be at his best going backwards to deal with the tricky Swiss star.
Team News
For the Gunners, Shkrodan Mustafi is expected to fit again for the trip to the Midlands. The only injury or suspension concerns that Wenger has are to Santi Cazorla, who is out for the season, as well as Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Laurent Koscielny who are set to miss out.
For the hosts, Stephen Ireland and Ibrahim Affelay are confirmed absentees, while Saido Berahino is expected to remain on the bench after his replacement Mame Biram Diouf scored int their last match against Bournemouth.
Prediction
This is a notoriously unhappy hunting ground for Arsenal, but Stoke’s current form is so dire that they will be incredibly lucky to get anything from this game.
Stoke City 0-2 Arsenal
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