Arsenal will be looking to bounce back from two straight defeats when Leeds United visit the Emirates Stadium on Sunday.
A run of three wins in four games has seen Leeds climb to tenth in the Premier League table – one point ahead of eleventh-place Arsenal.
🎯 "Shoots! Scores!" Enjoy Jack's strike from all angles! pic.twitter.com/uJiMZz7G08— Leeds United (@LUFC) February 9, 2021
🎯 "Shoots! Scores!" Enjoy Jack's strike from all angles! pic.twitter.com/uJiMZz7G08
The Gunners enjoyed a seven-game unbeaten streak across December and January, picking up five wins and two draws in that time.
However, following a goalless draw with Manchester United at the end of last month, Mikel Arteta’s men have since been beaten by Wolves and Aston Villa.
Despite dominating possession and recording 14 shots at Villa Park, Arsenal were unable to bounce back from Ollie Watkins’ second-minute goal.
Regardless of the Gunners’ poor recent run, it is worth pointing out that they have kept a clean sheet in each of their previous four home matches in all competitions.
Needless to say, Arsenal’s backline will need to be on top form again when free-scoring Leeds come to town.
Indeed, only the top four teams have scored more Premier League goals than Marcelo Bielsa’s men this season.
Leeds have scored over 1.5 goals in each of their previous four league wins, including a 5-0 thrashing of West Brom.
Victories over Newcastle, Leicester, and Crystal Palace since the turn of the year have seen the club break into the top half of the Premier League table.
However, let’s not forget that only two sides – Crystal Palace and West Brom – currently have a poorer defensive record than Leeds.
Having scored 38 goals and conceded 38 goals so far this term, Leeds head into Matchday 24 with a goal difference of 0.
Head-to-head: In the reverse fixture back in November, Arsenal and Leeds produced a goalless draw at Elland Road.
Before that, the two sides’ last top-flight meeting came all the way back in 2004, with four FA Cup ties coming between 2011 and 2020 (two wins each).
Team news: Arsenal duo David Luiz and Bernd Leno are likely to return to Arteta’s staring XI after serving red card suspensions. Thomas Partey and Kieran Tierny are both injury doubts for the Gunners.
Leeds could be without as many as eight first-team players this weekend, with Ian Poveda, Robin Koch and Rodrigo among the notable absentees.
Arsenal appear to have taken a turn for the worse in recent weeks. On the flip side, Leeds have secured a number of positive results of late.
With that in mind, Forebet predicts that Leeds will come away from the Emirates with all three points on Sunday. Both teams are likely to score, yet Leeds are expected to come out on top.