Sunderland v Arsenal: Gunners to End the Season with a Bang?

With news that Mathieu Flamini is set for pastures new with the strong possibility of Alexander Hleb following in the near future another cup less season appears more and more costly for Arsenal. So can the Gunners continue the current good spell, end the season on a semi-high and show those thinking of jumping ship there’s more to come from the Gunners?

They certainly know how to turn on the flair when it comes to facing Sunderland. For the past six meetings, the Gunners have put at least three past the Black Cats. And what makes matters worse for Sunderland is in three of the last four, Arsenal have not only impressed upfront but also remained steady in defence with nothing passing through their back line.

On a brighter note for Sunderland, their latest encounter with the Gunners did see them break that notorious deadlock to stick two past Almunia. Problem was Arsenal stuck to their guns and put three in the net to take all three points again.

Mixed Emotions for the Gunners

After such a disappointing end to the season, there will clearly be feelings of regret and frustration within the Arsenal camp. Flamini has already vented his discontent by agreeing terms with AC Milan and Hleb has also been quite vocal on the subject by questioning the club’s ambitions and spending power. This pair are already set to miss the end of season finale anyhow; Flamini through injury and Hleb through suspension so today’s match really will be a taste of what life’ll be like next season.

With the pressure now off, Arsenal’s young guns have since relaxed and allowed their elegant football to flow across the park once more. Albeit their last three opponents have hardly been world beaters - Reading, Derby and Everton - but all had something to fight for. Their opponents here don’t except for the possibility of leapfrogging their north east rivals Middlesbrough.

A Successful Season for Sunderland

With a potential 13th place finish available to them, Sunderland should finish this season with a smile on their faces. They must have put some their prior Premiership demons to bed after established themselves as sterner stuff. At home, they have a pretty strong track record; nine wins at the Stadium of Light betters that of Blackburn, Portsmouth, West Ham, Tottenham, Newcastle, Wigan and Boro. Only six teams have come to Sunderland and taken home all three points.

Recent results against Villa, Wigan and Fulham show just how far they have come since 2006 and should be satisfied with their progress.

Pundit’s Pick: Progress no doubt but this game remains a stretch too far (away win). Do you agree with this for your Premier 10 prediction? Play Now>>

Tags: Arsenal, Black cats, Gunners, Premier 10 match preview, Premier League football, Sunderland

This entry was posted on Wednesday, May 7th, 2008 at 11:33 and is filed under Betting-Tips, Premier 10 Match Previews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.