Desperately looking for a win, West Ham United have travelled to the Emirates to face Arsenal. Both sides are yet to register points this season.
Arsenal have been under scrutiny and Emery’s tactics early on in the season have come under the scanner. Across town, Pellegrini is also facing a similar predicament after glaring tactical inconsistencies in his first two games in charge.
Hence it will be a contest played out between two under-pressure teams and the quality on offer makes it one of the highly anticipated clashes of the weekend. Let us take a look at 3 key player duels which will have an impact on the final result.
Arsenal’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is yet to find the back of the net this season, after making an impressive cameo during the second half of last campaign. But, the Gabonese international will be well aware of West Ham’s lack of defensive solidity at the back and thus, will be keen to get off the mark this weekend.
That being said, he will have to get past the highly experienced Angelo Ogbonna, who has been an ever-present figure in the West Ham backline this season. The former Juventus star has the experience as well as the quality to stop someone like Aubameyang. But, it will be interesting to see how the Arsenal forward manages to utilize his pace against the Hammers today.
One thing is for sure. If Ogbonna manages to get a grip on this game, Aubameyang and co. could find it very difficult to breach the opposing defence.
On the flanks, it will be a battle of wits as two experienced defenders in Pablo Zabaleta and Nacho Monreal go head to head on Saturday.
Pellegrini opted for Zabaleta in the last game after new signing Ryan Fredericks suffered a horrible debut against Liverpool in the opening fixture. And, it is likely that the Chilean will once again opt for the former City man.
But, the onus will be on Nacho to keep Pablo in check. The Spaniard’s ability to stay composed under pressure has been well-documented and against an experienced campaigner like Zabaleta, it will be interesting to see how he manages to nullify West Ham’s influence from the wide areas.
Last but definitely not the least, Arsenal’s Aaron Ramsey is set to face his former teammate Jack Wilshere this weekend, in what will arguably be one of the most memorable moments for the Arsenal fans in recent years.
Wilshere almost spent the entirety of his playing career at Emirates before moving to West Ham earlier this summer. Although the English international is yet to make an impact since the transfer, we all know what he’s capable of when in form.
Up against him, however, will be former teammate Aaron Ramsey, who was also his midfield partner during a large chunk of his professional career. Ramsey has emerged as a key player for Arsenal and this match-up will be one of the most interesting ones to watch this matchweek.
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