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Leicester City 10th (14-6-15) vs Arsenal 5th (20-6-9)
Live on Sunday at 7 AM ET on NBCSN
Leicester City and Arsenal meet once more in the league and have a lot more in common than you’d think. Both are currently chasing a spot in Europe, but going the complete wrong way about it. They’ve each lost or drawn their last two matches against sides they arguably could’ve done much better against.
The Opposition
Arsenal’s unlikely loss to Crystal Palace at home, which was their first in the league since January 2016, came at the high cost of potentially missing out of a spot in the Champions League. They still have a backdoor option available to them after advancing into the next round of the Europa League after defeating Napoli. They seem to be all in on the backdoor route at the moment, and while they have the “easier” route to a Champions League, two of their last three games are away from home.
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Unai Emery has done a lot of good work this season with Arsenal, but he has a very busy Summer ahead of him. There is the Mesut Ozil saga that is still ongoing. Does anyone trust this defense? Aaron Ramsey has been their best player of late and even he isn’t sticking around. I think for Emery to be a hit at Arsenal, he has to chance his system to fit his two strikers, who in my opinion are some of the best in the league.
The Foxes
Given how terrible West Ham have been, they showed up for portions of that match against our Foxes. While I would contest both of their goals were avoidable, Leicester did themselves no favors defensively, much like under Claude Puel. Jamie Vardy is still having a party under Brendan Rodgers and long may it rage on!
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Starlet Harvey Barnes could have had 10 Premier League goals by now if he would have had some luck on his side. I’m glad he isn’t gathering attention the way the likes of James Maddison and Ben Chilwell are. Sign him up forever and reap the rewards of the majestic man on the left!
The Prediction
I can not explain in structured sentences my dislike for Arsenal, so I will just put it in the scoreline. Leicester win 5-1. Bring the vodka, not the Charlie.