Prediction: Arsenal vs Liverpool

Verdict: Away win

Best odds: 9/5

Bookmaker: Olympusbet

The only two teams to have presented Manchester City with a challenge in racing for the Premier League title since 2017/18 are set to do battle on Sunday as Arsenal welcome Liverpool in the ninth round of the campaign in the English top flight.

Arsenal come into this huge clash on the back of a disappointing trip to Bournemouth last week and a narrow Champions League victory over Shakhtar Donetsk, while Liverpool continued their fine form with victories over Chelsea and RB Leipzig.

Arsenal

Arsenal went to the Vitality Stadium last week as big favourites against Bournemouth, but a poorly aimed back-pass from Leandro Trossard and misjudgement from William Saliba condemned them to playing with 10 men for over an hour, as the French centre-back earned a straight red card for his foul on Evanilson. Second-half goals from Ryan Christie and Justin Kluivert made sure the Cherries took full advantage of the situation, inflicting Arsenal with a shocking defeat.

The Gunners are in third place in the Premier League table, three points behind Manchester City in second and level with Aston Villa in fourth, and if Villa beat Bournemouth in Birmingham on Saturday, it will put added pressure on Arsenal ahead of the Liverpool match.

Arsenal’s luck turned, however, on Tuesday, when an own-goal from Dmytro Riznyk in the first half handed Mikel Arteta’s team a 1-0 triumph over Shakhtar, in what ended as an emotional evening for Oleksandr Zinchenko – the Ukraine international played for Shakhtar at several youth levels. Currently in ninth place with seven points from three matches in the new Champions League format. Arsenal shouldn’t have too many worries about qualifying for the knockout stage.

Team News

Arteta has serious problems in his defensive ranks. Saliba is suspended for his red card against Bournemouth. Kieran Tierney and Tahekiro Tomiyasu have been out for a while now, and to add insult to injury, summer signing Riccardo Calafiori was forced off against Shakhtar after an unfortunate fall. The Italy international shouldn’t be out for long, but he certainly won’t be in contention for this match.

The involvement of Jurrien Timber is questionable too, as is that of winger Bukayo Saka. Both of them missed Friday’s training session, but Arteta refused to rule either out completely at his pre-match press conference.

But Arsenal’s biggest problem at this stage of the season is arguably the continued absence of captain Martin Odegaard, who isn’t expected back in action before the November international break.

Liverpool

The Arne Slot era at Liverpool has gotten off to a near-perfect start, with 11 victories in 12 competitive matches so far. The only setback was a rather unexpected home loss to Nottingham Forest.

The Reds had a difficult match against Chelsea last week. The Blues are on the rise under Enzo Maresca too, and they put up a proper fight at Anfield, forcing Slot to admit he was worried at some point. Still, a reckless foul by Levi Colwill on Curtis Jones provided Mohamed Salah with a chance to open the scoring from the spot in the 28th minute, and the Egyptian took it. Nicolas Jackson made a great run to get on the end of a fine pass from Moises Caicedo to equalize in the 48th, but just three minutes later, Jones restored Liverpool’s lead and set what would turn out to be the final score at 2-1.

It was slightly easier for the Merseysiders in Leipzig, as Darwin Nunez poked home from close range to score the only goal of the game, but they still needed backup goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher to produce a couple of fine saves to ensure victory.

Liverpool top the Premier League table, of course, with 21 points, one more than Manchester City and four more than Arsenal and Aston Villa. On the other hand, they sit second to Villa on goal-difference in the Champions League, with both teams boasting a 100% record after three rounds.

Team News

Though their situation isn’t quite as alarming as Arsenal’s, Liverpool have some injury concerns of their own. They are without their primary goalkeeper Alisson Becker at the moment, and like Odegaard, he isn’t expected back before the international break next month. The same goes for Harvey Elliott, who suffered a broken foot after spending just seven minutes on the pitch this season. Forward Diogo Jota is also out through an injury he picked up against Chelsea.

Winger Federico Chiesa and right-back Conor Bradley are classed as doubts at this point, though neither of them would be expected to start anyway.

With no Alisson, Kelleher’s fine form has become very important. Jota’s absence means Nunez is likely to lead the line upfront, though Slot has a tough decision to make between Luis Diaz and Cody Gakpo on the left flank. Jones has been playing extremely well lately, but he’s still unlikely to start this match with Slot set to name his preferred trio in midfield – Ryan Gravenberch, Alexis Mac Allister and Dominic Szoboszlai.

Conclusion

Current form usually played a big role whenever Arsenal and Liverpool met over the last few years, and at the moment, it seems poised to swing in Liverpool’s favour. Arsenal, on the other hand, shouldn’t be underestimated, especially in front of their own fans and with a strong point to prove after the Bournemouth debacle.

It will be a lively and narrowly contested affair, but Liverpool could just nick this one and broaden the gap between the two teams in the Premier League table.

Verdict: Away win

Best odds: 9/5

Bookmaker: Olympusbet