Saturday October 15th 2016 15:00 GMT
After a traditionally awful start to their season, Arsenal have come on with all guns blazing. They sit joint third on 16 points and are looking like a more solid yet potent unit. The oft-maligned Olivier Giroud has been replaced upfront by Alexis Sanchez and his more dynamic game creates space for others to prosper in.
Like a new player (10 years into contract)
This has been most pronounced in the play of one Theo Walcott. Long a by-word for unfulfilled potential, Walcott seems to be experiencing something of a renaissance on the pitch. Gone are the delusions of previous seasons where he openly claimed that his best position was as a striker, he has now decided to own his true potential and knuckle down on the wing. This is not to say that he does nothing but stay out wide, far from it as he is becoming adept at arriving at pace into the aforementioned space left vacant by the movement of Sanchez but that he is more focused and he has benefitted as a result.
In turn, the attacking intention and orchestration of Mesut Ozil has greater scope in which to perform. Allied with the intelligent buzzing of Alex Owobi and Sanchez, at this point in the season, Arsenal pose a serious attacking threat. Santi Cazorla is once again probing from a deep-lying playmaker position whilst Granit Xhaka is no slouch in that regard either. With only one goal conceded in their last five games, things are rosy enough in that particular garden.
Out with the old
Swansea are patently not smelling the flowers. Since last we spoke, they have dispensed with the services of manager, Francesco Guidolin, and have brought one Bob Bradley in his place. The American has much experience in both domestic and international competitions and arrives in Wales by way of a stint in the French Ligue 2 with Le Harve.
Oh say can you see
What he doesn’t have is any experience of the British game and some Swansea fans aren’t overly enamored by the appointment. Of course, good performances and wins will quickly rid them of this unease but there is a feeling that with the new owners being American, there is something untoward in the appointment. Time will tell but for what it’s worth, this column thinks it would have been worth the clubs time to stick with the Italian but what do we know?
Conclusion
For all the praise of Arsenal above, it is worth remembering that it took a very late and illegal goal for them to prevail over Burnley last time out. In other words, the Arsenal of old can’t be lurking too deep in the shadows behind. Swansea are a better team than recent results suggest but they are still without a win in six games and losing streaks are habits to break. It’s quite likely that they will run Arsenal close and maybe even give them a scare but in the end, the home team should win out. The best price for an Arsenal win is 2/7 from BetWay, barely worth your while. The draw or away win, though…
Latest Football Articles…
Football Prediction Sites: Which one is THE best?
Updated , .With quite a few of them out there, it’s often asked which is the best of the football prediction sites. We also wanted to know, and decided to...
Champions League 2021 – Who will be Contenders?
When the draw for the Champions League groups is done, there is always a lot of excitement – as the group your team is placed in may help to decide...
Liverpool v Tottenham Hotspur Betting Preview
Saturday February 11th 17.30 Anyone who hasn’t been living in a cave on Mars with their fingers in their ears for the last month will have noted that, in addition...
