The Gunners welcome Graeme Potter’s Brighton and Hove Albion to the Emirates in match week 32 of English Premier League action.
The Seagulls briefly held the ascendancy in fixtures between these two sides. The North Londoners have now hit back in recent times, winning two and drawing one of the last three matches between these two sides. The Gunners have not conceded a goal in this three-match run against Brighton.
Arsenal will be looking to bounce back after some wayward form in recent weeks. That wayward form had an exclamation point in the way of a 3-0 defeat to fellow London club Crystal Palace last weekend. That ability to bounce back has been severely dented by a couple of huge injury issues to regular members of their starting XI.
Arsenal vs Brighton FYIs
When is it? Saturday, April 9 2022 3 PM Local Time
Where is it? Emirates Stadium, London
Who’s in form? Arsenal (WWLWL) Brighton (LLLLD)
What are the odds? Arsenal(-160) Brighton (+100) Draw (+290)
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Starting XI Prediction: go here
Team News
As reported right here on The Sportsbank earlier this week, Scottish left-back Kieran Tierney is out for the rest of the season after suffering a knee injury. Tierney pulled up lame after a training session following the Gunners’ last match against Crystal Palace. Club officials confirmed that it was indeed a bad one and that he will undergo surgery imminently. A bitter blow to Mikel Arteta’s men.
To make matters worse, the Gunners’ first-choice right-back is facing a battle to be fit for this match too. Takehiro Tomiyasu remains a doubt for this match as he struggles to recover from various injuries he has suffered since the turn of the year.
As if things couldn’t get any worse, Thomas Partey suffered what has turned out to be a very serious thigh injury in the humiliating defeat to Crystal Palace. The Ghanaian international will be sorely missed in defensive midfield. The word from the club is that he too faces a race against time to be available again this season.
In brighter news, Mikel Arteta expects Nicholas Pepe to be available for this clash following illness This is some welcome good news for the Gunners.
These injuries couldn’t have come at a worse time for Arsenal. Gunners’ fans will be hoping that their young squad has the mental and physical strength to secure the top 4 finish that seemed a foregone conclusion just a week ago.
Stuart Kavanagh is an up-and-coming sports journalist from Melbourne, Australia. Along with being the owner of the sports and entertainment website thepyrrhic.com, he is also the co-host of the ‘After Extra Time’ podcast. Football mad, he is always down for debate and discussion at @stueyissickofit on Twitter.