ARSENAL v BLACKBURN ROVERS
Football : England : Premier League
Saturday, February 4th, 2012, 1:00PM GMT

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PREVIEW

Let's face it, Arsenal have sucked almost all of 2012 and this is a must win game for the Gunners. They are home against a terrible side, who actually beat them 4-3 earlier this season.

Fortunately, Chelsea have been slipping up, and might do so again on Sunday, so 3 points are crucial if hopes of a top 4 finish are to be maintained.

To be fair, Arsenal did score 2 of Blackburn's 4 goals for them earlier and the loss came at a time when nothing was going right for Arsenal.

Things improved for the North Londoners but they have slipped again, losing not just to Manchester United, but to the likes of Fulham and Swansea, despite leading. Bolton too grabbed a point off Arsenal in midweek.

Arsenal last won in the league on the 31st December, scraping past QPR at this ground 1-0. Based on that run, the prices on Arsenal are a joke.

There are a few trends here for Arsenal that are encouraging, such as not losing at home to Blackburn the last 8 home games, winning 7, and keeping Blackburn from scoring in 6 of those matches. Despite their slump, only Liverpool and Manchester United have come to the Emirates this term and won.

Blackburn are slumping too, having lost 2-0 to Newcastle, leaving them in the relegation zone. Blackburn are dire on their travels, winning just 1 of their 11 away games and conceding 23, well over 2 a game.

BETTING VERDICT

I'm going for big odds this week, so while the safer bet is to take Arsenal -1.5 on the AH at about 1.85 over at Pinnacle, I'm going to back the Gunners to try and bounce back out of their slump by pouncing all over a poor Blackburn defence.

Arsenal to score 3 is priced too low, so I'll take a chance at Arsenal scoring as many as they conceded in the reverse fixture.

There is revenge to be had, and I expect to be entertained from my visit to the Emirates. Come on Henry.

The Statistics :

The Pick :

Arsenal

FIXED ODDS BETTING :

Take Arsenal Team Total - Over 3.5 goals @ 3.75 (Bet365)