Arsenal underpin their title ambitions at the start?

After the Community Shield, the ball will start rolling in the English Premier League this weekend. Mikel Arteta’s team won the first title of the young season in a penalty shootout against the Citizens. Now the aim is to get off to a positive start in the championship as well. Last year’s runners-up are the clear favourites. For the opening match between Arsenal and Nottingham, odds of around 1.20 are offered on a home win.

Fans of the English Premier League can look forward to even more football in the 2023/24 season. The reason for this is not an increase in the league, but rather rule adjustments that from now on stalling for time will be valued more strongly. Long stoppage times, as was the case at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, will not be uncommon. Late goals will become more likely as a result and therefore a prediction on a goal after 78:59 minutes at tested bookmaker Bet365 could be a good option for Arsenal vs. Nottingham.

The kick-off at the Gunners’ Emirates Stadium will be as early as 13:30 on Saturday afternoon. An hour earlier, fans of English football will be looking Down Under as England take on Colombia in the quarter-finals of the 2023 Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.

Arsenal – Statistics & current form

The wait is over and Arsenal London fans will finally hear the Champions League anthem in their own stadium again this season. The last time the Gunners were in the top flight was in 2016/17. For a long time, the fans were even allowed to dream of the championship title, but the Arteta eleven ran out of steam a little in the finish. Arsenal conceded three of their six defeats in 2022/23 in the final six Premier League games.

Spotted Reinforcements

The capital eleven really ran out of steam in the finish, largely due to the lack of depth in the squad. Compared to Manchester City, Mikel Arteta certainly didn’t have as many options on the bench. Unsurprisingly, the squad has been strengthened in recent weeks, especially across the board. Granit Xhaka, an important player, has left the Gunners, but Declan Rice is a replacement who is probably one step above the Swiss in terms of quality. The defensive midfielder cost over 100 million euros and was considered Mikel Arteta’s absolute favourite.

Kai Havertz and Jurrien Timber (centre-back from Ajax) are the two other reinforcements. The Arsenal squad has undoubtedly gained depth. In the next few days, David Raya (goalkeeper, Bayern also wanted him) is also expected to join Arsenal. With regular goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale and his wife tragically coping with the loss of their unborn child, Arteta wanted a replacement so Ramsdale could take the time he needed.

With a fortunate win in the Community Shield against Manchester City, the well-rehearsed Gunners eleven showed that they can give Guardiola’s eleven a run for their money. Leandro Trossard scored a last-minute equaliser before Arsenal prevailed on penalties. A sign to the competition that the title is by no means unrealistic. For this to happen, however, teams like the Tricky Trees must not be a stumbling block. For the season opener, a tip on the handicap success is also an interesting possibility with Arsenal vs. Nottingham.

Predicted Arsenal line-up:

FC Arsenal (Expected line-up) 4-3-3

Nottingham – Statistics & current form

Last summer saw a flurry of comings and goings for the Tricky Trees, who changed almost the entire squad despite promotion. Coach Steve Cooper needed time for his new team to settle in. Only one win was achieved in the first twelve league games, but the club management stuck by the Welsh promotion hero and was ultimately rewarded for this continuity with a place in the league. Staying in the league will also be the goal in 2023/24.

League’s weakest away team

Compared to last year, Nottingham will be much more settled at the start of the season this term. The club has kept a low profile in the transfer market, only signing Anthony Elanga (Manchester United), Matt Turner (Arsenal) and Ola Aina (FC Torino). There were no notable departures for the Cooper eleven and thus a better start to the season should be expected.

Away from home, however, expectations are traditionally low. The Cooper eleven owes its class preservation to the results at home in the City Ground. 30 of the 38 points were collected at home. On the other hand, Nottingham celebrated only one win away from home, drew five times and had to return home 13 times without a point. With only eight points, Nottingham was the weakest away team in the league. In 19 away games, only eleven meagre goals were scored. The odds between Arsenal and Nottingham are therefore also worth considering when betting on “Arsenal to win 0”.

If Nottingham do manage to score, it is likely that former Union striker Taiwo Awoniyi will do so. The Nigerian has scored in each of the last four Premier League games last season, always making it 1-0.

Predicted Nottingham line-up:

Nottingham Forest (Expected line-up) 4-3-2-1

Arsenal – Nottingham Direct comparison / H2H balance

Although the two teams have faced each other over 100 times in total, there have only been six games in the 21st century so far. The balance reads completely even, as both teams celebrated three victories. It is also striking that in five of the six duels between Arsenal and Nottingham the tip “Both teams meet? No” was the correct decision. Last year, Arteta’s side won convincingly 5-0 at home, but were beaten 1-0 at the City Ground on the penultimate matchday. By then, however, the Gunners were already without a chance of winning the Premier League title.

Arsenal – Nottingham Tip

The starting point for this clash is clear, the hosts are dreaming of the title, for the visitors it is all about staying in the league. Accordingly, odds of only 1.20 are offered for a home win on the three-way market between Arsenal and Nottingham. However, there are plenty of interesting betting opportunities outside of this bet. The Tricky Trees were the weakest away side in the league last year, winning just one away game.

Although there was an upward trend at Nottingham towards the end of the season, we still don’t believe that the Cooper eleven can hold their own at a title aspirant. Especially because the first league game of a season is not a speciality for Nottingham, in each of the last four years the club started with a defeat. This series is very likely to continue and we recommend the tip “Win Arsenal at 0” with six units bet on Arsenal vs. Nottingham. This also leads to the bet “Both teams score? No”.