It should be a Saturday with another six Premier League matches being played but five of them have been postponed because of the number of positive Covid-19 cases in the league so we are left with one match to enjoy instead.
The good news is that the one match which has survived was always scheduled to be on TV so we are not devoid of the chance to watch it play out and it promises to be an interesting affair as Leeds United host Arsenal.
Where to watch
The match will be shown as part of the Saturday Night Football show. That programme is on the Sky Main Event and Sky Premier League channels and begins at 5pm and the match kicks off at Elland Road at 5.30pm.
Leeds United
The Yorkshire outfit go into this match needing a win after just one victory in seven has left them just two places above the relegation zone in the Premier League. That win over Crystal Palace wasn’t exactly convincing either and of course the Whites go into this match off the back of that truly brutal beating at the hands of Manchester City on Tuesday night. Failure to beat Brighton and Brentford recently left them vulnerable in outings at Chelsea and City in the last week and they came up short.
To be fair to Leeds, injuries are absolutely killing them at the minute. They have injuries everywhere you look and they are to key players as well which is never ideal. That has led to them conceded 12 goals in their last three matches which is a big concern but they have only scored seven in their last seven so they are having issues at both ends of the pitch. A lack of squad depth is leaving them vulnerable later in games too which isn’t helpful either.
Arsenal
On the face of it, given that they moved into fourth position when they beat West Ham on Wednesday evening, you would think that Arsenal are having a very positive season, but there are off field issues rearing their head and actually I think their results have been much better than their performances overall. You would probably want that from a team but generally these things tend to come together at some point and that would be a concern.
The other concern is the form of Arsenal away from home. They have lost their last three matches on their travels and while defeats at Liverpool and Manchester United are understandable, the loss at Everton was particularly concerning, as is the fact they conceded nine goals in those games too. Their better form is definitely at home and they don’t create anything like the same amount of chances away from home as they do at the Emirates.
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Team News
Leeds United are going to be without a plethora of players here with the likes of Kallum Phillips, Patrick Bamford, Daniel James and Jamie Shackleton all out injured, while Junior Firpo is suspended. Robin Koch came off the bench in midweek and could start here.
Arsenal are continuing to play without their now former captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang after he broke club discipline so unless there was something in the late withdrawal of Gabriel Martinelli on Wednesday night the Gunners could be unchanged.
Betting
Given all the players that Leeds United have missing in this match you would think Arsenal have to win this game but they should have beaten an injury hit Everton side in their last away game and stunk the place out so I’m not sure I can be getting involved in the Gunners at odds on. When you consider Arsenal have leaked nine in their last three away games and Leeds have shipped 12 in their last three games you might think over 2.5 goals is a runner but I’m not sure who would score for Leeds and I don’t fancy Arsenal scoring three.
That makes me head to the player markets for a punt on this one and I’ll take the angle that Leeds United are awful at defending set-pieces. That is nothing new but Manchester City scored from one on Tuesday night, although to be fair they scored from everywhere. It was a reminder that they struggle defending set plays though and makes me think the 9/1 on Gabriel Magalhaes to score anytime is big. He scored recently in the win over Southampton and has two goals to his name this term. Calum Chambers scored from a set play in the reverse meeting between these two earlier in the season and the way the Brazilian attacks crosses he looks a fair price to follow suit.
Tips
Back Gabriel Magalhaes to score anytime for a 1/10 stake at 10.00 with Bet365
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