Arsenal VS Zurich Live Football Score Match 04 Nov 2022
Having missed one opportunity to wrap up qualification for the last 16 of the Europa League, Arsenal will endeavour to seal top spot in Group A when FC Zurich visit the Emirates Stadium on Thursday night.
Mikel Arteta’s charges remain first in the section despite going down 2-0 to PSV Eindhoven last week, while their Swiss counterparts can only reach the Europa Conference League at best.A spate of underwhelming wins had befallen Arsenal before such a run culminated in a deserved loss to PSV Eindhoven last week, as Joey Veerman and Luuk de Jong struck in the second half to ensure that the fight for first place would come down to the final matchday.
That result was, of course, overshadowed by news of the terrible stabbing in Italy which left loan player Pablo Mari wounded, and the Gunners paid tribute to their centre-back – who has now been discharged from hospital – during their comeback success against Nottingham Forest at the weekend.
Regaining top spot in the Premier League by putting five unanswered goals past the Tricky Trees, Arsenal are now well-placed to book their ticket to the last 16 of the Europa League and simply need to match or better PSV’s result against Bodo/Glimt to do so – Arteta’s side will be hoping that the artificial Norwegian turf can trip up their Dutch adversaries as it nearly did them.
Two points separate Arsenal and PSV heading into the final matchday, and the Emirates fortress should certainly serve the Gunners well on Thursday, as they welcome Zurich to North London having won each of their last 11 competitive matches at home.
Furthermore, each of Arsenal’s last five European fixtures at the Emirates have ended in victory – losing just one of their last 19 such games – and Arteta has frequently stressed the importance of finishing top and avoiding adding a playoff tie with a former Champions League contender into their unforgiving schedule.Failure to overcome Bodo/Glimt would have consigned Zurich to a fourth-placed finish before the final matchday, but Bo Henriksen’s side still have something to play for after overcoming their Scandinavian counterparts 2-1 on the penultimate matchday.
Amahl Pellegrino gave Bodo/Glimt the lead on the stroke of the hour mark, but Nikola Boranijasevic’s leveller and Antonio Marchesano’s stoppage-time winner kept Zurich’s hopes of a third-placed finish alive, even if they can no longer trouble the top two.
A 1-0 victory over Sion at the weekend made it back-to-back wins for Zurich ahead of this game – the Swiss champions had miserably failed to triumph in 13 matches in all competitions prior to beating Bodo/Glimt – and the new manager bounce appears to have arrived late, but it has arrived nonetheless.
The visitors now sit one point behind Bodo/Glimt and will make it into the Europa Conference League if they can pull off a shock win at the Emirates and the Norwegian side lose to PSV. A draw could also be enough, but Zurich would then need PSV to win by at least six goals at the Aspmyra Stadion.
With a total of 15 goals conceded in their five group-stage games – the worst defensive record in the entire competition – Zurich will travel to North London in hope more than expectation, and Arsenal secured a somewhat nervy 2-1 win over the Swiss giants two months ago.Arsenal are reportedly confident that the foot injury Bukayo Saka suffered in the win over Nottingham Forest is not a serious one, and the 21-year-old could even be back for the trip to Chelsea, but for the time being, two-goal substitute Reiss Nelson should fill in on the right.
Saka did train on Wednesday alongside Oleksandr Zinchenko in a major double boost for the Gunners, but Matt Turner is still being plagued by a groin problem, so Aaron Ramsdale should be given the nod again.
Emile Smith Rowe is still absent, but Mohamed Elneny has also returned to training much quicker than expected from a serious hamstring injury. The Egyptian will likely need more time to get up to speed, though, leaving Arteta in a tricky position with Granit Xhaka banned.
The midfielder’s suspension could tempt Arteta into pairing Thomas Partey up with Albert Sambi Lokonga, taking some of the defensive responsibility off the latter’s shoulders. Alternatively, Fabio Vieira and Martin Odegaard could both start in a midfield trio.
As for Zurich, Fabian Rohner will return to the squad amid a domestic suspension, but Mirlaid Kryeziu, Ilan Sauter, Blerim Dzemaili, Donis Avdijaj and Miguel Reichmuth are all sidelined.
Marchesano for the stricken Dzemaili was the only change that Henriksen made to his side at the weekend from the team that beat Bodo/Glimt, and an identical 3-4-1-2 setup should take to the field here.
The visitors have been handed a concern with ex-Rangers defender Nikola Katic, who came off with an unspecified injury against Sion, so Karol Mets is on standby.
Arsenal possible starting lineup:
Ramsdale; Tomiyasu, Holding, Gabriel, Tierney; Odegaard, Lokonga, Vieira; Nelson, Nketiah, Martinelli
FC Zurich possible starting lineup:
Brecher; Mets, Aliti, Kamberi; Boranijasevic, Selnaes, Conde, Guerrero; Marchesano; Okita, TosinThere is one really obvious bet to make on this game and that’s Arsenal to win, however, the odds attached to such a win aren’t exactly enthralling and neither are some of the other match result style outcomes with the HT/FT and -1 handicap odds still rather short. We think the ‘win to nil’ avenue is the way to go and there is good reason for it too. Not only are the odds of 9/10 (1.90) attractive but Arsenal have won three of their last four home matches without conceding in a run that includes both of their home Europa League games to date. Zurich meanwhile have scored just one goal across each of their last three away games.It is kind of implied from our first prediction but we don’t see both teams scoring in this match. Arsenal have seen just one of their last five matches feature goals for both teams whilst Zurich have seen clean sheets for at least on side in three of their last five; it is worth noting that two of those Zurich games referenced have ended completely goalless too. With that considered alongside the odds on offer, we think the bet has decent value – and it serves to protect the other tip we’ve given on the off-chance that Zurich manage to lockdown the Gunners attack.Will Arsenal top the group?
With Arsenal needing to win to secure top spot in this group you can expect Mikel Arteta to name a strong XI. Granit Xhaka, however, will be a big miss for the Gunners; he’s suspended for this game. Emile Smith-Rowe, Bukayo Saka and Mohamed Elneny are both injured.
Arsenal Predicted lineup – Turner, Tomiyasu, Holding, Gabriel, Tierney, Lokonga, Nelson, Vieira, Odegaard, Nketiah, Jesus
Zurich arrive here with one sole intention – do not get embarrassed. They’ll sit in and try to suffocate the game whilst hoping to nick something on the break.
Zurich Predicted lineup – Brecher, Aliti, Katic, Kamberi, Boranijasevic, Conde, Selnaes, Guerrero, Okita, Dzemaili, Aiyegun
