Arsenal will make the short trip to Selhurst Park on Sunday afternoon, as they look to kickstart their season against Crystal Palace.
The Gunners fell short of winning ways at the Emirates last weekend, after suffering a shock opening day 2-0 defeat to West Ham.
And now Arsene Wenger will take a squad mounted with pressure across London to take on a Crystal Palace side who can’t wait to get back out on the pitch.
Alan Pardew’s side picked up a satisfying 3-1 win over Premier League new boys, Norwich, last Saturday and now he’s targeting another upset to an Arsenal side who are quite frankly unpredictable.
However, there is one positive to take from last weekend, and that’s the wake up call that some of these players needed if they want to mount a serious title challenge this season.
And it’s that shock loss that will be sitting in the back of every players head on Sunday, so you can expect a reaction from Wenger’s men.
Key Men
Arsenal: Francis Coquelin
I think every Arsenal fan can accept that the defensive midfielder didn’t live up to the hype that surrounded him last season following his performance against West Ham.
The Frenchman had a shocker in his gameplay and never really looked comfortable on the ball. His passes were astray and when things didn’t go his way he started to lose his head a bit.
This week is a massive chance for him to prove himself, and he won’t be shy of work to do with both Yohan Cabaye and Jason Puncheon to deal with.
Crystal Palace: Yohan Cabaye
The 29-year-old has already got off to a flyer at Palace, scoring and assisting a goal in last weekends game at Carrow Road.
Cabaye is an influence in attack and defence, and will ultimately be the player putting a stop to Coquelin and Cazorla’s link up play.
The former PSG man has a wealth of experience, and behind the home crowd he will have plenty of reasons to add to his current records.
Likely Approach
For Arsenal it’s a chance to shake off last weeks defeat, and without 60,000 fans on their backs it might be a welcome relief to be playing away this weekend.
The Gunners will make changes for Palace, with Hector Bellerin returning from injury and even more excitingly, the possibility of Alexis Sanchez starting on the left wing.
But more importantly, players like Petr Cech and Francis Coquelin will want to repay the fans for their horror show last weekend, so expect plenty of work rate from this duo.
It’s unknown whether Wenger will opt for Walcott or Giroud, but personally I would stick Giroud up there because he does a job that not many people realise.
With Palace playing their first home game of the season, the fans will be more than excited to welcome their team back into Premier League life.
Expect Pardew to tell his players to sit back and be quite reserved, after all that’s what West Ham did and they were remarkable in their execution.
Palace will be at their greatest threat from set pieces, with Glenn Murray and Scott Dann being their impressive assets in the air when it comes to sneaking a goal in.
But always be on the lookout for their wingers in Wilfried Zaha and Jason Puncheon, who prefer to cut inside and take on a strike no matter what the distance.
Arsenal XI: Cech, Bellerin, Mertesacker, Koscielny, Monreal, Coquelin, Cazorla, Ox, Ozil, Alexis, Giroud
Palace XI: Mccarthy, Ward, Dann, Delaney, Souare, Cabaye, Mcarthur, Zaha, Mutch, Puncheon, Murray
Prediction: Crystal Palace 1 – 2 Arsenal
This is not going to be an easy game for the Gunners, but nothing other than three points will be acceptable on Sunday afternoon.
The return of Sanchez is a massive boost for the team, and they must hit hard within the first half to pose a real threat to Pardew’s side.
Palace will pop up with a scare, and I actually think they could take the lead in this one, but ultimately Arsenal will have too much on the line to not grab a victory.
Like us on Facebook by clicking here and follow us on Twitter @Fresh_Arsenal to stay up to date with all the news, blogs and transfer updates.