Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal return to the Champions League on Wednesday for the first time since 2016/17. Their first match sees them square off against former Europa League opponents PSV, with each side having won once each – both on their home turf. Although old enemy Ruud Van Nistelrooy will be missing from the opposing dug-out having resigned last season, the Gunners will still be aiming to get revenge on their opponents for their defeat in the previous encounter. We’ve previewed the upcoming game and picked out some betting tips from the latest football odds.
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Arsenal vs PSV
Wednesday 20th September, 8pm
Emirates Stadium, London
Live on TNT Sports 1
Arsenal vs PSV Preview
The Gunners have made a steady start to the season so far, having only dropped two points in their opening five fixtures. However, their form has not been the most convincing, and they have resorted to “winning ugly” on numerous occasions.
Despite this, they are still fourth in the league table, just two points off leaders Manchester City with the fifth-best Goal Difference in the division. Most recently, they dug in to secure a hard-fought 1-0 victory away at Goodison Park last weekend. While this might not seem like much of an achievement given Everton’s woeful form, it was the first time the Gunners had won on the blue half of Merseyside since 2017. To put that into further perspective – none of the squad who participated in Sunday’s match played a part in that last victory!
That game saw Arteta rest several key players including Aaron Ramsdale. Gabriel Jesus was only brought on in the 66th minute, while Kai Havertz and Takehiro Tomiyasu were only introduced in the 80th minute to see out the game. The signs seem to point to the Arsenal manager having one eye on his team’s midweek fixture. After all, Mikel Arteta knows how important a good Champions League run will be in attracting the type of quality his team needs to continue its rebuilding project.
PSV have made a perfect start to the new Eredivisie campaign with four wins from four. Unlike Arsenal, there have been no questions asked over their form – they have blown their domestic opposition away and boast a Goal Difference of +12, with 13 goals scored and only one conceded.
Though they have had to battle through the qualifying rounds to reach the Champions League Group Stage, they have done so in style. They swept aside Sturm Graz 7-2 on aggregate and Rangers 7-3 over two legs, with a 5-1 thumping of the Scottish side putting the result beyond all doubt to secure the Dutch side’s place in Pot 3. While there may be those who dismiss this feat as easy given the gulf in quality between PSV and their opponents, the fact remains that Peter Bosz’s side are riding a wave of momentum going into this fixture, and they proved to Arsenal last year just how tough of an opponent they can be.
We’re expecting Arteta to rotate his squad again, this time with one eye on this weekend’s North London derby. The Arsenal manager knows all about that game’s importance as a former Arsenal player and captain, and will be eager to secure the bragging rights for himself, his team and – most importantly – his fans.
However, we don’t expect anything too drastic – as we mentioned above, Arteta knows how important the Champions League is to attracting star talent. To give just one example, we don’t think Declan Rice would have chosen Arsenal over Manchester City if the Gunners were not playing in Europe’s top club competition.
PSV, on the other hand, will most likely be turning out a full-strength first XI. Unlike Arsenal, they have no big game this weekend – their opposition will be Almere City, who only gained promotion to the Dutch top flight for the first time last season.
Champions League Betting Odds
Despite PSV having the ability to play a full-strength XI, Arsenal should still have the stronger side. Taken together with their solid performances on home soil and the raucous Emirates atmosphere that has developed at the club since Arteta’s appointment, it should come as no surprise that the Gunners are firm favourites at 1.38 to claim victory.
While PSV will undoubtedly be hoping for an upset, they haven’t won a Champions League Group Stage match on the road since the 2007/08 season. The odds on ending that run are not in PSV’s favour, as they stand at 7.30 to win against Arsenal and they’re 5.10 to draw the match. It doesn’t make for happy reading for PSV fans.
In terms of goal scorers, Gabriel Jesus is the favourite at 5.50 to open the scoring, with Eddie Nketiah close behind on 5.80. Given PSV’s torrid away form in the Champions League, it is perhaps no surprise that you have to go all the way down to 10th to find PSV’s first goalscorer, with Luuk De Jong at 11.00 to net for the Dutch side.
Arsenal vs PSV Betting Tips
Bet Builder: Arsenal to win, Over 2.5 goal and Gabriel Jesus to score anytime @ 3.10
While the visitors may have the luxury of playing their strongest possible team, we still believe the Gunners will have enough ammunition in their locker to defeat their opponents. In particular Gabriel Jesus should be raring to go, having only come off the bench in the 66th minute against Everton at the weekend. With fresh legs and a point to prove, we could well end up seeing the Brazilian’s name on the scoresheet at full time.
Bukayo Saka to score first @ 6.20
While Jesus and Nketiah may be favourites to get their names on the scoresheet, Arsenal have another potent goalscorer in Saka. The Englishman already has two goals to his name so far this campaign, following on from an impressive 15 goals in all competitions last season.
*Odds subject to change.
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