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| Gary O'Neil's side is depleted but, they could still present themselves as a banana peel to a wounded Arsenal side when they meet at the Molineux on Saturday night. (Photo credit: Sky Sports) |
Once again, just like it did last season, Arsenal’s season is unraveling right before their eyes, and it looks like there’s nothing they can do about it.
The agony of defeat at home against Aston Villa was followed by another ouster in the Champions League to Bayern Munich, more painful to say the least as the Bavarians are at their lowest in a while. One must consider it a significant loss.
The Wolves will not be mentioned in the relegation conversation, even if they lose to the Gunners. Gary O’Neil’s side is safe and cannot be caught by any of the teams in the drop zone. It’s a great achievement for a man who was brought in, arguably, to fight against the drop.
Wolves can heap more misery on the Gunners; anything short of a win ultimately ends Arsenal’s title charge. They cannot afford to drop points anymore this season, even though they still have Chelsea, Tottenham, and Manchester United to play.
If Arsenal wins at Molineux, they will go top temporarily, and only the reigning champions will be able to dethrone them. The goal difference between the Gunners and Liverpool is wide; you don’t expect Liverpool to score ten goals away at Fulham.
Gary O’Neil revealed on Friday that the duo of Mattheus Cunha and Semedo are out of the game against the Gunners; he also doesn’t think Hwang Hee-Chan can play more than a half, and Rayan Ait Nouri could be available from the bench.
Jurien Timber is back with the Arsenal squad, but Mikel Arteta insists the Dutchman will only return to first-team football after he has gone through a couple of games with the U21 side. Timber ruptured his ACL in Arsenal’s league opener against Nottingham Forest and hasn’t returned yet.
Outside of Timber, every other Arsenal player is available for selection. Do you expect Arteta to rotate players? Not quite; he is out of Europe, and he only has the league title to fight for. It's not entirely in his hands, but a win today puts pressure on Manchester City and Liverpool.
Wolves can win on Saturday night to enjoy the feeling of another major scalp after beating Tottenham home and away. The possibility of finishing in the top half and maybe a place in the Conference League next season is slim and more unlikely than otherwise; however, it won’t make the headlines if Arsenal wins.
Verdict: Arsenal to win