Former Celtic star Chris Sutton has dropped his prediction for Arsenal’s meeting with Aston Villa in the Premier League, calling it a “tricky” affair for the Gunners. Sutton does not see the Gunners keeping a clean sheet but believes they will eventually come out on top, securing a 3-1 win.
Arsenal Look To Return To Winning Ways After Bayern Munich Clash
Premier League leaders Arsenal welcomed Bayern Munich to the Emirates Stadium for the first leg of their UEFA Champions League quarter-final on Tuesday night (April 9). They took the lead just 12 minutes into the game through Bukayo Saka, but ex-Gunner Serge Gnabry and old foe Harry Kane scored one goal each to put the Bavarians in control before the half-time whistle. The Londoners pushed hard for the equalizer, ultimately succeeding in the final quarter of the game. Substitute Leandro Trossard popped up with the leveler 10 minutes after coming on.
Mikel Arteta’s side received a lot of flak for not getting the best of out-of-form Bayern Munich at the Emirates Stadium. With the score level, they must now beat the Germans at the Allianz Arena, something they have not managed since the Round-of-16 first leg of the 2012-13 season.
Chris Sutton Defends Gunners, Backs Them To Beat Aston Villa
Arsenal will be eager to return to winning ways when they host Aston Villa at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday (April 14), and Sutton is backing them to be successful. In his Premier League predictions column for BBC, Sutton wrote:
“Arsenal got a bit of criticism for their performance against Bayern Munich in midweek but I didn’t think they were that bad.
“You can’t be dismissive of Bayern with the players they’ve got and if Bukayo Saka had gone for goal at the end of the game rather than chucking himself into Manuel Neuer, Arsenal would have won. I don’t know what Saka was thinking there.”
He added:
“This is another tricky game for the Gunners with former boss Unai Emery returning to the Emirates. Aston Villa beat them before Christmas and they are very dangerous coming forward.
“Villa have definitely got a goal in them, but I don’t think they are going to outscore Arsenal. There is too much at stake now for Mikel Arteta’s side, and the Premier League leaders have too much to lose.”
Sutton’s prediction: 3-1 Arsenal
Arsenal are sitting at the top of the Premier League rankings, but only due to their superior goal difference (51 vs 42) record over second-placed Liverpool. Any mistake in the upcoming seven matches could be catastrophic for their chances of winning the league title.
