Emirates Stadium
Sun, Jan 22nd 2012 Kick Off: 16:00

Naturally, after the drubbing we gave Arsene Whinger’s boys at Old Trafford earlier in the season, this one has attracted all kinds of speculation as to what might happen this time at the Emirates and whilst nobody believes we will see a similar scoreline most do expect there to be several goals in the game again.

Personally, I have a feeling that it could go the opposite way with both teams playing very cagily.

After a disastrous start to the season followed by an incredible, Van Persie-inspired run of results, Arsenal are currently going through another little dip and the prospect of them not even qualifying for the Champions League for the first time in (fifteen?) years is looking a very real possibility.

However, it has been on their travels where Arsenal have suffered most; at the Emirates, they have been very strong and have only suffered the one defeat there this season (their very first home game of the season against Liverpool when Arsenal were struggling and Liverpool were full of optimism for the new season).

They have conceded just six goals at the Emirates in the league but, somewhat unusually for Arsenal, have scored just sixteen which from ten games is not the stuff Arsenal have been renowned for down the years and they do rely far too heavily on Van Persie to provide the goals.

As for us, well, the injury situation does appear to be resolving itself which means that Fergie will have a decent number of players to choose from and it is just as well because this match represents the start of a tough set of fixtures which we will do well to come through unscathed.

I actually have a feeling that Fergie won’t pick what we might by now consider to be his “strongest side” for this one. Park might get the nod somewhere in midfield (he seems to have a happy knack of scoring against Arsenal) but as for the rest, it’s anyone guess but I think there’ll be a couple of surprises.

I’ve been on a bit of a roll with the bets of late and I suppose that run has to end at some point and it could well be today because I’m going to go slightly against the general consensus for the bet here.

The bet is 2 points Under 2.5 Goals @ 2.1 with BetVictor (the new name for Victor Chandler).