15:00 BST, Sunday 13th May, John Smith’s Stadium (Huddersfield, England)
David Wagner’s side have already spoilt one party this week and will look to crash another when they host Arsene Wenger’s final game for the Gunners. Back-to-back draws have clawed the Terriers over the line to guarantee them Premier League football next season but they will have good cause to be cautious ahead of this match after their 5-0 defeat, their biggest of the season, at the Emirates Stadium earlier this season.
As big days go, this definitely qualifies as big for Arsène Wenger. He will call time on his stay with the Gunners at the final whistle, a sound which many will hope is accompanied by a fitting away win. While it is well documented that Arsenal are currently without any away points since the turn of this year, this only seems to add to the occasion of a story which feels written in advance to provide one final win against the odds for Wenger.
Last Time Out
Chelsea 1-1 Huddersfield Town (Premier League)
The Terriers secured their future with a battling draw which came courtesy of a second-half defensive masterclass. While Huddersfield offered little threat to the Chelsea goal, they were rewarded for rigidly sticking to their gameplan and executing almost to perfection.
Chelsea came in search of a win which would keep their fading hopes of a top-four finish alive and their determination told in reading the final statistics. Huddersfield only managed 22% of possession and had 3 shots compared to the home side’s 22. That Huddersfield put 2 of their 3 shots on target compared to Chelsea’s 5 from 22, however, tells its own story.
Laurent Depoitre profited from a goalkeeping error to give the Terriers a surprise lead at the start of the second half only for an unfortunate clearance by Mathias Jorgensen to cannon into the net behind him soon afterwards.
From that point on it was all hands to the pump and bodies on the line defending for the underdogs. With Jonas Lössl in inspired form and no weak links in the chain of bodies ahead of him, Huddersfield hung on to survive a draw and survive relegation which was made an impossibility.
Leicester City 3-1 Arsenal (Premier League)
An open and entertaining game provided plenty of action for the neutral but yet more away-day pain for the Gunners. After conceding an early goal resulted from a failure to clear a corner, Arsenal’s day fell worse within 92 seconds when Konstantinos Mavropanos was given a straight red card. Adjudged as the last line of defence, the Greek centre-back left little option for the referee when he willingly felled Kelechi Iheanacho who was racing through on goal.
Despite the numerical disadvantage, Arsenal continued to press forward and drew level soon after the break, through Pierre Emerick Aubameyang. In search of a winning goal, the Gunners continued to commit players to attack rather than sit on a solitary point but this also left them often exposed at the back.
Arsenal again fell foul of the referee when Henrikh Mkhitaryan clumsily tackled Demarai Gray to concede a penalty before a late third for the Foxes provided further punishment for the visitors. While by no means a bad performance from Arsenal, they again faced a long journey back to London.
Huddersfield Town Lineup
Danny Williams (ankle)and Elias Kachunga (ankle) will both be unavailable, however, Tom Ince has recovered from his recent hamstring injury and will be hoping for a return to the starting lineup.
Arsenal Lineup
Konstantinos Mavropanos is suspended following his early red card against Leicester while Mesut Özil (back) Laurent Koscielny (Achilles) Mohamed Elneny (ankle) and Santi Cazorla (Achilles) will all miss out once more for the Gunners.
Key Battle: Mathias Jorgensen (Huddersfield Town) vs Shkodran Mustafi (Arsenal)
Despite his clearance only travelling as far as the face of Marcos Alonso at Stamford Bridge, Jorgensen was a tower of strength for Huddersfield. Not only did he nullify Chelsea’s aerial bombardment, he made 12 clearances to keep the Blues at arm’s length. With Arsenal expected to do most of the attacking in this match, more of the same could be required again this weekend.
With Arsenal missing several central defenders for this match, Mustafi looks likely to earn a recall to the team. The German World Cup winner has been suffering a severe dip in form lately which has seen him start only 1 of the last 4 games after being culpable for several individual errors which have directly lead to goals. Winning only 2 of his 5 aerial battles against Leicester after coming on as an early substitute, Mustafi could find himself back in the spotlight with Steve Mounie likely to target the Arsenal man.
Talking Points
Fun Factor
With another season in the Premier League already assured, the Terriers have little at stake in this match, if anything at all. There will most definitely be a carnival atmosphere inside the John Smith’s stadium because of this and the Huddersfield players will want to give the crowd something more to cheer.
The home crowd in West Yorkshire have been a strong force in this successful campaign and their support could again lift the team to a high standard. While Wenger’s side will have their own motivation, they will have to overcome a vocal, one-sided support from the terraces which is sure to be unrelenting throughout the course of the match.
A summer to enjoy
Thursday’s pre-match press conference by Arsène Wenger revealed that he has no plans yet as to what his next step will be. With his 22 years at Arsenal soon to conclude, it’s perhaps too early for the Frenchman to think about the future. The wounds of his departure will cut deep being that he is a self-admitted Arsenal fan at his core.
After working tirelessly for so long, he could well want the return of action quicker than expected. Having worked 7 days a week for longer than many Arsenal fans memories stretch back, the lack of work could prove to be a huge culture shock for the French manager.
There will undoubtedly be a queue of clubs and associations looking to prosper with the guidance of Wenger, however, where he will turn to next appears to be as much of a mystery to him as anyone else watching on.
Prediction: Huddersfield Town 0-2 Arsenal
Despite Arsenal failing to win a single point away from home this calendar year, the players will be determined to give Wenger a fitting send-off, as they did for his final home match. Huddersfield will prove a tough nut to crack on their home ground but Arsenal have a habit of producing good results when the pressure is off.
(Photo Credit: Reuters/Matthew Childs)
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