English Premier League Week 11 Preview: Arsenal Look To Close Gap With Chelsea Against Newcastle United

After reeling off five successive wins Arsenal were shocked in midweek by Shakhtar Donetsk. The Gunners had taken an early lead through Theo Walcott, but sloppy defending cost them a pair of goals and the victory. Newcastle, by contrast, are still on a high after hammering a very poor Sunderland side 5-1 in the Tyne-Wear Derby. Kevin Nolan, who has been in good form the last few weeks scored a hat-trick, and the Magpies have looked good going forward for most of the season so far.

These two sides met just a week and a half ago in the Carling Cup, when Arsenal came out four-nil winners at St. James’ Park. That result should certainly give Newcastle some extra motivation, and they’ll be buoyed by the knowledge that the scoreline flattered the Gunners, who took the lead through an own goal by Tim Krul and needed some excellent saves by Wojciech Szczesny to keep a clean sheet.

Although it may not a huge match for the hosts at first glance, Arsenal’s two fixtures after this one are away to Wolves and Everton - not easy points by any stretch. Having built some momentum, the Gunners need to keep winning in the league or Chelsea could run away with the title by Christmas. Newcastle will be looking to get any kind of a result here, but given their good early season form and Arsenal’s tendency to get caught out on the counterattack, they could certainly do just that.

Projected Lineup, Arsenal (4-3-3): Fabianski; Clichy, Djourou, Squillaci, Sagna; Wilshere, Song, Fàbregas; Arshavin, Chamakh, Nasri

Projected Lineup, Newcastle (4-4-2): Krul; Jóse Enrique, Coloccini, Williamson, Simpson; Gutiérrez, Nolan, Tioté, Barton; Carroll, Ameobi

Key Matchup: Cesc Fàbregas against Joey Barton. Arsenal’s Spanish captain is set to return from a slight knock that kept him out of the European clash in midweek, and will likely be on the end of some strong challenges in this match. Barton has been more than a physical presence for Newcastle, and is a key part of their attacking play. Look for the two of them to dictate the pace of their respective teams and possibly get stuck into each other a bit as well.

Battle Within the Battle: Andy Carroll has all the physical attributes to give the Arsenal centrebacks plenty of problems. With Thomas Vermaelen still out, Sebastian Squillaci and Johan Djourou will likely be the two central defenders up against the young English striker. Both looked shaky in midweek against Shakhtar, and Arsenal tend to play poorly against sides with a strong aerial presence up top.

Pick: Arsenal will probably make hard work of this unless they can grab an early goal. While the Gunners have the quality to beat Newcastle and should be favourites, they make things hard for themselves at times with weak defending. Arsenal to win 2-1.