It's entirely possible that Burnley could finish with its best season ever this season. The team has been up and down over the course of the last few seasons between the EPL and Championship, but now, the Clarets sit firmly in 10th place on the Premier League table and look good for at least one more season in the top flight. The task ahead on Sunday though, is a difficult one. Arsenal is fantastic at home, having been beaten just once at the Emirates this season, and Burnley will end up doing well just to eke a point out of its trip to London.
This Premier League duel will go down Sunday, January 22, 2016, at 9:15 a.m. ET at Emirates Stadium. The match will be televised live on NBC Sports Network.
Soccer Odds at BookMaker.eu
Arsenal -435
Burnley +1400
Draw +535
Over/Under 3
Odds Analysis
Burnley has done a lot of things well this year, but scoring goals hasn't been chief amongst them. The Clarets only have 23 goals this season, the same number as Swansea City sitting at the foot of the table, and that's why the insinuation is here that they aren't going to score in this match. The Gunners are set at -435 on the moneyline and -2 on the Asian Handicap, and a 2-0 final is clearly the most likely final score.
The total of a flat 3 is high, but it's only due to the fact that Arsenal is assumed to be scoring at least twice in this one.
Key Injuries
Arsenal just flat out can't get healthy. The Gunners are incredibly deep, and it's clear that Arsene Wenger has done a fantastic job with this team to keep it in the discussion for the EPL title this year, but boy, it would be a heck of a lot easier if the team was at 100 percent health.
Instead, Hector Bellerin, Francis Coquelin, Olivier Giroud and Kieran Gibbs are all question marks for this match with minor knocks. Mathieu Debuchy, Per Mertesacker, Yaya Sanogo and Theo Walcott are all out with longer term problems. And to top it all off, Mohamed Elneny isn't available due to his inclusion in the Africa Cup of Nations. Furthermore, Alexis Sanchez has been the subject of rumors to Juventus, and it's anyone's guess if he's going to be available on Sunday or not.
Burnley was doing just fine with injuries and other absentees until the FA Cup match against Sunderland a week and a half ago. The team lost Arfield Scott and Johann Gudmundsson to injuries in that match, and neither has played or trained since that point.
Recent Form
The results for Burnley of late have been pretty darn good when you think about it. The team needed a replay against Sunderland in the FA Cup third round, but it got the job done to advance. The club beat Southampton in its last Premier League match, and though it was beaten at Manchester City before that, losing 2-1 and having a real shot at a point was about as good of a result as a generally overmatched side could expect.
The Gunners aren't playing as well as their results are suggesting. They did beat Preston North End on the road in the FA Cup and took care of Swansea City 4-0 in their last EPL match, but those matches weren't nearly as good as the final scores, and it was so bad that Sanchez basically whined his way off the field against the Swans at Liberty Stadium.
Free Soccer Betting Pick
We feel like Arsenal is getting ready for a thud here. We're talking about a team that ended up in a 3-3 draw against Bournemouth, should have given up far more than one goal to Preston North End and unbelievably didn't concede against the worst team in the Premier League in spite of the fact that they just flat out couldn’t stay on the ball for the most part.
This just doesn't bode well going against a Burnley team that is stronger than you probably think. Can the Clarets strike home and steal three points? At a price of 14 to 1, we're willing to at least take the shot in the dark.
Premier League Odds: Burnley 1, Arsenal 0
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