Tony Pulis has to be happy enough the West Brom (11-11-15, 44 Points) will be safe for another season in the Premier League. What would make him even happier though, is if the Baggies can end the season not only beating Chelsea, but Arsenal (21-9-7, 72 Points) as well.
ODDS ANALYSIS
Barring a seven-goal swing, Arsenal will be safely into the UCL group stage. The Gunners would have to lose, while Manchester United would have to beat Hull City for that to happen, and the spread of goals would have to be more than seven to push Arsenal down to fourth and into the Champions' League playoff.
There are no odds posted for this match as of Wednesday evening, largely due to the fact that no one knows what's going to happen with Arsene Wenger and his lineup quite yet.
KEY INJURIES
Injuries aren't the concern to Arsenal. None of the men who sat on Wednesday against Sunderland are going to play in this match. The question is whether the likes of Jack Wilshere will be rested in preparation for next week's FA Cup final.
WBA's only noted injury is to Ben Foster in net, and he has been out for the last two months and won't be back until at least the beginning of next season, if not the middle of the term.
QUOTE TO NOTE
"We still have time to recover for Sunday and prepare well for the FA Cup final. What is important now is that we win on Sunday. We want to finish on a high in front of our own fans and give them the win they deserve." – Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger on the state his team is in heading into this last match of the EPL season
RECENT FORM
The Gunners haven't been good of late. They are just 0-2-1 in the last three matches, and they really haven't put on a good show since winning at Hull City on May 4.
West Brom had a thrilling result on Monday in a match which theoretically meant nothing. Relegation was already avoided, but the home finale still saw Albion take out England's champions 3-0. It was a stunning turn for a team which hadn't won a match since April 18 and hadn't won at home since March 14.
TALKING TOTALS
A lot of Arsenal's problem with form at the moment is the fact that it flat out hasn't been in a goal-scoring mood. The team has just one strike in its last three matches, and it has been shut out in three of its last five. The under is 3-0 in the Gunners' last three with ease.
The 3-0 result against Chelsea ended a stretch of three straight under performances for West Brom as well.
ANALYSIS AND PREDICTION
This match could be the swan song for Saido Bernahino, who is being linked to some of the big time teams in England. He put on a real show against Chelsea, one of his potential suitors during the transfer window, and he would love to do the same against Arsenal.
We're not sure what this match really means for Wenger and the Gunners. No doubt, Arsenal's fans would understand if a U-23 team took the field in this duel as long as the prize of the FA Cup was procured, but there has to be this degree of doubt about Manchester United and those seven goals in the backs of minds as well.
We still think that WBA is going to put on another fine display, and if the Gunners aren't careful, they could get beaten in this one. On a day where Manchester United will have tons of odd-man rushes and counterattacking opportunities, it could get a little scary for the hosts.
West Brom 1, Arsenal 0
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