Arsenal swat aside Fulham as Pierre-Emerick Aumbameyang strikes again
Arsenal bounced back from its mauling by Liverpool by easing past Fulham 4-1 in the Premier League to move to within two points of the Champions League qualification positions on Tuesday.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang wrapped up a routine victory in the 84th minute with his 14th goal of the campaign, leaving him the league's top scorer and giving him as many in 21 games as Alexandre Lacazette managed in leading Arsenal last season.
Lacazette was also on target at Emirates Stadium, scoring between strikes by Granit Xhaka and substitute Aaron Ramsey.
Fulham was well-beaten but briefly just 2-1 down when substitute Aboubakar Kamara tapped in from close range in the 69th. Kamara was dropped to the bench against Arsenal after disobeying manager Claudio Ranieri's orders by taking a penalty — which he subsequently missed — in a 1-0 win over Huddersfield on Saturday.
Arsenal was thrashed 5-1 by Liverpool on the same day in its heaviest loss since Unai Emery joined in the offseason. With the win over Fulham, fifth-placed Arsenal moved six points ahead of sixth-placed Manchester United, which plays Newcastle on Wednesday.
Just half-an-hour until kick-off at the Emirates Stadium for the second Premier League game of 2019, a London derby to continue the New Year celebrations as Arsenal face Fulham.
Dismissed by Liverpool last time out, Unai Emery deploys Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette in tandem, and the pair will look to exploit Fulham's defensive vulnerabilities.
Laurent Koscielny is back as part of the back three. Lucas Torreira and Aaron Ramsey are perhaps the most prominent of those dropping out.
Four changes from Claudio Ranieri after his side snatched a crucial late victory against Huddersfield on Saturday. Ryan Sessegnon returns in an apparent role on the left wing, while both Jean Michael Seri and Callum Chambers come out of the team. Ibrahima Cisse is one to profit, the Guinean earning a surprise start having played just 17 minutes in the Premier League so far this season.
So matching back threes for both sides, and a shared defensive fragility is something to watch in a game that could produce goals.
Fulham have somewhat turned things around under Claudio Ranieri in recent weeks but have still conceded more than any other Premier League team, while Liverpool showed that Arsenal's defence can be exploited in scoring four in the first half on Saturday.
The transfer window is open, so what do Arsenal need, who might they be targeting and who could be leaving the club?
We'll have all the transfer news throughout the month covered at The Independent, and our Arsenal expert Luke Brown has looked ahead to their potential dealings:
An embrace in the tunnel between former Borussia Dortmund teammates Sokratis and Andre Schurrle, and the players are ready to make their way onto the pitch as the rest of the Fulham team emerges from their dressing room after a brief delay.
It is a must win game for Arsenal, but can Claudio Ranieri's Fulham shock them?
Black armbands for both teams and there will be a period of remembrance before kick-off for long-serving Arsenal chairman Peter Hill-Wood, an influential man in football through much of the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s, who unfortunately passed this week.
Though, in essence, both sides are playing the same defensive formation, already Fulham have slipped into more of a five with wing-backs tucking in and sitting deep, while Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Sead Kolasinac are pushing on and leaving Arsenal with a three.
Fulham lose the ball in midfield and somehow have only two men back, and though Alexandre Lacazette is rather taken out the ball is moved to Alex Iwobi moving into the box on the left.
Iwobi carries the ball to the byline and squares, and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang should do far better at the near post, hooking his half-volley over the bar with his left foot.
Laurent Koscielny looks for either Alexandre Lacazette or Alex Iwobi as both move to a similar area down the left, but Maxime Le Marchand and Tim Ream combine to snuff out that danger.
Staggeringly, Claudio Ranieri has never beaten Arsenal in the Premier League. Will that change today?
Fulham are trying to press high and are doing so with energy, though Arsenal are showing an ability to move the ball between the dark blue shirts, and Fulham need to be careful to leave enough men at the back to cover.
It is a lovely move from Fulham from the back, sparked by a nice turn round the corner from Andre Schurrle.
The ball is fed through the open Arsenal defence by Tom Cairney and though Aleksandar Mitrovic is offside, Ryan Sessegnon is coming like a train behind him to latch on to the through pass.
Sessegnon is one-on-one with Bernd Leno and tries to pick the bottom corner, but gets his angles wrong and in the end tamely places his effort a few feet wide.
The match will not be shown live on TV or online in the UK.
Independent Sport will keep you up to date with the action via our live blog.
Player to watch…
Aleksandar Mitrovic: It would have been easier to name an Arsenal player but with the Gunners’ defence a clear weakness, they will need to be very wary of the danger Mitrovic brings. The Serbian striker saved his side on Saturday after slotting the ball under the keeper to win his side the three points. That was his first goal in seven games so he’ll be feeling confident travelling to Arsenal, making him even more of a threat.
Form guide…
Arsenal: LDWLWD
Fulham: WDDLLD
Odds…
Arsenal to win: 33/100
Fulham to win: 8/1
Draw: 23/5
Prediction…
Arsenal 3-1 Fulham: Arsenal will be looking to please the fans after a very poor display against Liverpool and I feel they’ll come out firing. With the form Aubameyang is currently on, it’s going to be very difficult for the Fulham back line to keep him at bay.
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