Arsenal v Bournemouth: Distracted Gunners are vulnerable | OneFootball

English Premier League

Can Justin Kluivert and Bournemouth cause Arsenal some headaches on Saturday evening?

Arsenal have the Champions League on their minds, and Kevin Hatchard believes visitors Bournemouth can at least be competitive at the Emirates.

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Arsenal v BournemouthSaturday 03 May, 17:30Live on Sky Sports

Gunners looking for momentum

Twenty minutes into their Champions League semi-final against PSG, Arsenal fans at the Emirates must have feared the worst. Paris had scored a magnificent team goal in the fourth minute, and they pressed as if their lives depended on it. If ever you wanted a great example of Luis Enrique's coaching, you needed only to look at Ousmane Dembele chasing down defenders like a bullet from a gun.

And yet, Arsenal dug in and could have turned that first leg around. Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard were both denied superbly by Gigio Donnarumma, and Mikel Merino had a goal rightly chalked off for offside. They also survived some scares, as Bradley Barcola screwed wide a great chance and his fellow sub Gonçalo Ramos rattled the crossbar.

1-0 it finished in North London, and Arsenal are still very much in the tie. So how seriously will they take this clash with Bournemouth?

While changes are expected, Mikel Arteta is a touch limited in certain areas in terms of squad depth, and there is motivation to win the game. The league title has gone, but the Gunners could qualify for the Champions League this weekend if they win and other results go their way. Arteta's side do need to gain some momentum, as they have won just three of their last nine Premier League matches.

Riccardo Calafiori is pushing to recover from injury, but Gabriel, Jorginho, Kai Havertz, Takehiro Tomiyasu and Gabriel Jesus are all out. Bukayo Saka is likely to be rested, with Raheem Sterling and Ethan Nwaneri potential replacements.

Bournemouth can still rescue fading season

Context is always important, and regardless of what they do from here on in, Bournemouth have had a fine season. They have been nowhere near a relegation battle at any stage, they have been seen as potential European qualifiers for months, and the emergence of talents like Milos Kerkez, Dean Huijsen and Antoine Semenyo has been heartening.

The opening of a new training complex and the exciting future plans for the Vitality Stadium are signs that the Cherries are on the up. However, with a club of Bournemouth's stature there is always a feeling of flux, with rising coaching star Andoni Iraola admitting that his top stars are likely to be hunted by clubs with big reputations and big budgets. Indeed, Iraola's future is uncertain too, with the likes of Tottenham and Real Madrid reportedly putting him on their recruitment lists.

On the pitch, AFCB reached the FA Cup quarter-finals before losing to Manchester City, and in the league they are only a point off the top eight, despite a run of one win in nine top-flight matches. Iraola's men were pegged back at the death in last weekend's 1-1 draw with Manchester United, their 11th draw of the season.

Evanilson was sent off in that clash with United, but the red card has been rescinded on appeal, and he is in line to start. Enes Unal, Ryan Christie and Luis Sinisterra are all still injured, but Iraola can select something that's pretty close to his best XI.

Cherries can keep it close

While Arsenal will probably field a decent team here and will want to win to make sure of Champions League qualification as soon as possible, it's hard to get excited about them winning if you consider their recent league form.

The return leg in Paris is the Gunners' biggest game of the season, so there's bound to be some kind of emotional effect on this match, and Arsenal have only actually won five of their last ten league games at the Emirates.

I'll start an 11/10 double by backing Bournemouth +2 on the Handicap. The Cherries have only lost by a two-goal margin or bigger twice this season, and on both occasions they were playing the newly-crowned champions Liverpool.

The other part of the bet is backing Bournemouth's Justin Kluivert to have a shot on target. The Dutchman has had at least one effort on target in 18 of his last 27 Premier League matches, and overall he's hit the target 22 times in 30 top-flight games this term. Bournemouth press high with great fervour, just as PSG do, and I expect them to win the ball in the Arsenal half a fair bit here.

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