Bodö/Glimt with the next surprise?
This coming Thursday, Arsenal FC will host the team from Bodö/Glimt. The Gunners are clearly favoured in this match. Even if coach Mikel Arteta rotates, the individual class of the host is greater than the quality of the Norwegians. The betting odds on the match between Arsenal and Bodö/Glimt are therefore clearly distributed. At the bookmakers, the odds on a home win are only 1.22 and thus anything but lucrative.
The underdog role seems to be clearly distributed, but the Norwegians already showed last season that Kjetil Knudsen’s team can also cause surprises on the international stage. Among other things, the Norwegian team defeated AS Roma in its best line-up and even made it to the quarter-finals of the Conference League. There, however, Bodö/Glimt were knocked out by the Romans, who even won the competition in the end. The odds on an away win seem a bit high based on those performances.
In the match between Arsenal and Bodö/Glimt, betting on a win for the Norwegians with a handicap of plus three goals has a lot of value. The Gunners will rotate a lot and therefore both teams are more on par than the odds suggest.
The visitors will give everything in this game, show fighting spirit and therefore not let Arsenal shoot them down. Although Arsenal FC’s B eleven is also well-stocked, such a big class difference between the teams is not to be expected then.
Arsenal – Statistics & current form
Arsenal FC are currently in second place in Group A in the Europa League. In a group with Bodö/Glimt, PSV Eindhoven and FC Zurich, the Gunners are the clear favourites to win the group. Arsenal usually enter the Europa League group stage with a B eleven and this year is no exception. Only three regulars played in the win against FC Zurich and therefore it is very likely that coach Mikel Arteta will again give some players a rest in the upcoming match.
Surprisingly good start to the season
The Gunners have made an outstanding start to the new season, suffering only one defeat. On matchday 6 of the Premier League, the Londoners were defeated by the Red Devils with 1:3. The remaining eight games were all won and therefore Arsenal are also on top of the Premier League. Coach Mikel Arteta’s team even managed to pick up one more point than Manchester City and is therefore one of the favourites in the battle for the English championship for the time being.
Newfound offensive strength
Arsenal have improved significantly, especially on the offensive end, and stand at 20 goals in the Premier League after just eight matchdays. In the entire pre-season, the Gunners scored only 61 goals. Thus, the Londoners were able to raise their average from 1.60 goals per game to 2.5 goals per game. And even when Mikel Arteta rotates, the team is able to create plenty of chances and also convert them. The difference maker in the Arsenal FC squad is clearly new signing Gabriel Jesus.
Gabriel Jesus
The Brazilian striker is in outstanding form and if it wasn’t for a certain Erling Haaland, Jesus would probably be the best nine in the league. At Manchester City he never got beyond the role of a joker and still scored a lot of goals for the Skyblues. After his move to Arsenal FC last summer, the striker is now really blossoming. In eight games, the Brazilian scored five goals and set up three others. This makes him the top scorer for the Gunners and one of the pillars of their attacking play.
Predicted Arsenal line-up:
Turner – Tomiyasu, Holding, Gabriel, Tierney – Viera, Lokonga, Xhaka – Marquinhos, Nketiah, Martinelli
Last matches played by Arsenal:
Europa League Grp. A
07/10/2022 – Arsenal FC 3 – 0 Bodö/Glimt
Premier League
01/10/2022 – Arsenal FC 3 – 1 Tottenham
18/09/2022 – Brentford 0 – 3 Arsenal FC
Europa League Grp. A
08/09/2022 – FC Zurich 1 – 2 FC Arsenal
Premier League
04/09/2022 – Manchester United 3 – 1 FC Arsenal
Bodö/Glimt – Statistics & current form
The reigning Norwegian champions are in first place in Group A of the EL. The Norwegians are probably fighting together with PSV Eindhoven for the second place in this group. The victory against Zurich and the point win in Eindhoven were therefore enormously important.
In the match against Arsenal FC, Bodö/Glimt are underdogs, but by no means without a chance. The Norwegians also won against teams like AS Roma, Alkmaar and Celtic last year. Since the Gunners often rotate in the group phase, the chances of taking at least a point are quite good.
Mission Champions League
Bodö/Glimt are currently only in second place in the Eliteserien and are already 15 points behind Mode FK. Their chances of winning the championship are thus vanishingly small and the top flight is also a distant prospect. Second place in Norway is only enough for Conference League qualification, so the Europa League is now almost as important as everyday league life. The only chance to play in the Champions League next season is to win the Europa League. That seems rather unlikely, but just not impossible.
Unconcern in the offensive game
The Norwegians provide the best offence of all teams in the domestic league with 60 goals. That was already the case in 2020 and also internationally the Norwegians showed great performances especially in the offensive game. Bodö/Glimt, for example, scored eight goals in three games against Roma or five goals in two games against Celtic Glasgow.
The games without own goals in the calendar year 2022 can almost be counted on one hand and therefore a goal against Arsenal is not unlikely. In the match between Arsenal and Bodö/Glimt, the odds on “both teams to score” are therefore very interesting.
Does Amahl Pellegrino make the difference?
The striker from Bodö/Glimt is already 32 years old but still a real goal scorer. He has already scored 20 goals in the Eliteserien and also set up six goals. In the pre-season, Pellegrino scored five goals and set up three others in the Conference League.
He came off the bench in the first Europa League match against FC Zurich, but coach Kjetil Knudsen will not be able to do without the top scorer against Arsenal. Not only is he a real leader because of his age, but he can also make the difference in terms of play.
Predicted line-up of Bodö/Glimt:
Haikin – Sampsted, Lode, Höibraten, Wembangomo – Gronbaek, Berg, Saltnes – Mvuka, Espejord, Pellegrino
Last games from Bodö/Glimt:
Europa League Grp. A
07/10/2022 – Arsenal FC 3 – 0 Bodö/Glimt
Eliteserien
01/10/2022 – Lilleström 1 – 4 Bodö/Glimt
18/09/2022 – Bodö/Glimt 1 – 1 FK Haugesund
Europa League Grp. A
16/09/2022 – Bodö/Glimt 2 – 1 FC Zurich
Eliteserien
11/09/2022 – Tromsö 3 – 2 Bodö/Glimt
Arsenal – Bodö/Glimt Direct comparison / H2H balance
In the match between Arsenal and Bodö/Glimt, the betting odds are not influenced by the direct comparison, as there has not yet been a clash between these two clubs. This means that next Thursday’s match at the Emirates Stadium will be the first meeting between the two teams in the history of football. This is primarily due to the fact that the Norwegian underdogs have never been involved in the Europa League before.
Last year’s participation in the Conference League was the Norwegians’ first appearance on the international stage. Arsenal FC, on the other hand, have aspirations of playing in the Champions League season after season, so the Gunners will be going all out to win the EL in the knockout rounds at the latest.
Arsenal – Bodö/Glimt Tip
In the match between Arsenal and Bodö/Glimt, the prediction clearly goes in the direction of goals. Arsenal is clearly favoured by the bookmakers. However, the odds will shift at the latest when the line-ups are out. The Gunners will once again be fielding a B eleven and therefore the difference in class is not as great as the betting odds suggest. The Norwegians are clearly better than FC Zurich and the Swiss lost only 1:2 against the English. A clear game is therefore not to be expected.
In the match between Arsenal and Bodö/Glimt, the tip on both teams meeting is therefore much more interesting. The English already conceded a goal against Zurich and Bodö/Glimt’s offence is a lot stronger. In addition, Arteta will again rotate in the defence, so that the Gunners’ back four will not be well-rehearsed. This is the chance for the Norwegians to cause the next surprise and possibly even take points with them.
