ARSENAL host Leeds in Sunday's Premier League match-up. James Cantrill (@JimmyThePunt) shares his thoughts on the fixture.
Arsenal vs Leeds | Sunday 14th February 2021, 16:30 | Sky Sports
Sunday afternoon sees Leeds head to the capital to face Arsenal. The hosts, who currently languish in the bottom half, will be hoping to bounce back from their disappointing defeat at Villa Park last week.
If they secure all three points here they will leapfrog Leeds, who currently sit two points ahead of the Gunners in tenth place, however, they haven't tasted victory since the end of January and welcome Yorkshire men who have been in fine fettle as of late.
To be honest, I cannot work out why Leeds are so long here, they have won three of their last four EPL games and gone toe to toe with most of the big boys this season. On opening day they narrowly lost at Anfield in a seven goal thriller, they drew 1-1 to Man City and drew 0-0 to Arsenal in the reverse fixture. That being said, they have lost their last two games vs the ‘big six’ by an aggregate scoreline of 9-2!
I also think Arsenal are far from the finished article. They have got a lot of love recently and rightly so because they have come on leaps and bounds and are playing some lovely football.
However, they have lost their last two, haven’t won any of their last three and their last two EPL victories came against a depleted Saints side and Newcastle. Bet365 have Leeds with a half a goal head start at 1/1 and I think this is worth a go.
Given both managers' styles I also think this game has a whiff of cards about it. Pepe was sent off in the reverse and a quote from Allioski has been doing the rounds, however, I am going to steer clear of that little match up.
Instead, I like the look of Jack Harrison to be booked at odds of 17/2. The ex-Man City winger has picked up two cards in his last four EPL starts as he has begun to concede fouls consistently.
On Sunday, he should be covering Arsenal’s most fouled player Bukayo Sako who draws 2.1 per game in the EPL. Bielsa loves his side to press high and this could see Saka playing off the shoulder of Harrison as he thrives in the half spaces between midfield and attack.
This will be a nightmare for Harrison to deal with, particularly in transition.
Best Bets
Arsenal vs Leeds – Leeds +0.50 Asian Handicap (1/1 Bet365)
Arsenal vs Leeds – Jack Harrison to be carded (17/2 Bet365)
