Arsenal v Blackburn Rovers
Football: English Premier League
Saturday 4 February 2012 - Kick Off 1pm

---

Arsenal

The fans have voiced their unhappiness at recent performances against Swansea and Manchester United, and their mood would not have been much improved by the 0-0 draw with Bolton Wanderers during the week. The Champions League begins against next week for the team, but there is a serious concern that they will not be playing in that competition next season unless there is a vast improvement of form.

With Newcastle United, Liverpool and Chelsea all fighting for the final Champions League place, Arsenal cannot afford to have too many more poor results. The Gunners dropped to 7th in the Premier League following the results during the week as they look to improve their 7-2-2 record at the Emirates where they have scored 17 goals and conceded 8.

The draw at Bolton stopped a run of 3 consecutive defeats in the Premier League, although they have not now won in 4 League games. In that time, Arsenal have managed to win 2 matches in the FA Cup at the Emirates, although they were beaten 1-2 by Manchester United in their last League game there. The Gunners had gone 7 games in all competitions here since scoring more than 1 goal in a game, although they snapped that by scoring 3 against Aston Villa in the Cup last weekend.

Bacary Sagna returned to the side after recovering from a broken leg and could stay in the side, especially as other full-backs are still out. Jack Wilshire looks set to miss the rest of the season after suffering a setback in his recovery from injury, while Gervinho is still at the African Cup of Nations.

Blackburn Rovers

Steve Kean must have been scratching his head as to how his Blackburn Rovers side failed to pick up a point during the week against Newcastle United, let alone actually going on to win the game. It seems the fans have accepted the fact that the board will not be sacking Kean any time soon and they have been giving the side much better backing in recent games.

After a positive run of results over the Christmas period, Blackburn did briefly find themselves out of the relegation zone, but they are once again sitting in one of the trapdoor positions. They are 18th in the table with 18 points gained this season, and they are now 2 points behind Bolton in the final position of safety. They are 1-6-4 away from home this season, scoring 17 goals and conceding 23.

Blackburn have picked up 8 points from their last 18 available in the League to once again give themselves a chance to survive after a turbulent season. Rovers have been impressive away from home of late, picking up 5 points from 3 games at Liverpool, Manchester United and Everton, and they have still scored in every away game they have played this season.

Yakubu remains suspended and he was sorely missed as the team squandered so many chances in their loss to Newcastle on Wednesday night. David Goodwillie missed the game last time out through illness and he will be a late fitness check.

Head to Head

Blackburn Rovers beat Arsenal in an entertaining game at Ewood Park earlier this season, coming through 4-3.

They also earned a tough 0-0 draw here last season towards the back end of the season, but they have usually found it tough to earn points here.

Arsenal had won 7 League games in a row here against Blackburn before last season, and they have now kept clean sheets in 6 of their last 8 at home against Rovers.

Prediction

Both of these sides should be disappointed with their results during the week as they both had so many chances to score and yet failed to do so in games against Bolton Wanderers and Newcastle United.

Those disappointments means both sides will be desperate for the three points in this one and I think it could be a tighter game than people may think when looking at the prices.

The first thing to say is that Arsenal are a ridiculous price considering their troubles in scoring goals and the fact that the side looks a little short of confidence in front of goal, especially outside of Robin Van Persie.

They have had a hard time scoring at home, with the game against Aston Villa being the first time in 8 home games that they have scored more than one goal in a single game.

In saying that, they have been creating chances and it seems that someone is going to take a hiding sooner rather than later, and Blackburn are ripe for that kind of beating if their previous results here are anything to go by.

However, Blackburn have scored in every away game in the League this season so this could be a tight contest all the way and one I think Arsenal will just want to get the three points from, whether that means a stylish win or a gritty 1-0.

With a trip to AC Milan coming up during the week, I am going for Arsenal to come through with a close win, and will back them to win by one goal exactly, with all their last 5 home wins coming by a single goal margin.

At 4.00, that looks like it could be a bit of value, despite my thinking that Arsenal are due to give someone a bit of a hammering soon.

The Statistics :

The Pick :

Arsenal 2-1 Blackburn Rovers

FIXED ODDS BETTING :

I'll back Arsenal to win by 1 goal (English Handicap Draw) @ 4.00 (Bet Victor)