Bournemouth vs Arsenal
England – Premier League
Date: Thursday, 26 December 2019
Kick-off at 15:00 UK/ 16:00 CET
Venue: Vitality Stadium.
With all the talk and speculation is now out of the way, Arteta can now focus on life as Arsenal boss, and his first task will get points on the board by any means necessary.
There is a perception that the Spaniard, having worked with Pep Guardiola for more than three years at Manchester City, will quickly look to infuse the philosophy of the squad of players who mostly have been playing without confidence since the beginning of October.
However, while the changes are expected in the short term, Arteta will see a double header against Bournemouth and Chelsea as an opportunity to motivate his team into giving the appearance of his commitment to the game in completely, rather than different periods of the game.
While watching from the stands at Everton on Saturday afternoon, Arteta would have been relatively pleased with what he saw, despite the lack of a clear threat in the final third.
Despite drawing a blank for the second game in a row, Arsenal kept their first clean sheet in the Premier League since October 6, taking their tally to just three for the season.
The aim now will build on the foundations laid during the clash at Goodison Park, which is exemplified by several important blocks were performed during the closing stage in Merseyside.
At the other end of the field, however, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is not at best, and this game is to throw up the possibility of Alexandre Lacazette was brought back into the starting lineup.
The Gabon international has scored just once in his last four starts in the top flight, while his strike partner only played 12 minutes of football since netting four times that of many events.
Interest has also been shown to be a problem for Bournemouth in recent weeks, with only one saved in their last six hours of football.
That came during the closing stages against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, get a side of Eddie Howe important win 1-0, but the defeat came in each of the six other matches played since Nov. 9.
Because of their strong opening to the season, Bournemouth just about staying out of trouble, although now there is an urgency to have a productive Christmas period to avoid becoming involved in a relegation battle.
After losing 1-0 to Burnley at the weekend in a game that included only one shot on target, Howe must now decide whether to throw a bit more caution to the wind against a team who have their own drawbacks.
Howe, himself, has insisted that the club has an obligation to entertain their supporters, and it will come as a surprise if Callum Wilson was not called back into the starting lineup.
Although it has been gone almost three months without finding the back of the net, Bournemouth is not possible to make progress up the standings until the England international has ended his 10 matches in a row without a goal.
That said, given the growing injury crisis, Howe need to find some sort of balance during the Christmas period, with a trip to Brighton & Hove Albion to follow two days later.
The schedule and the lack of available players can dictate a change in the system for Bournemouth, but it arguably should not be considered as a negative given that it works against Chelsea earlier this month.
Prediction
Given the recent struggles of both parties, this one is really difficult to call.
However, the appointment Arteta has the potential to lift the dark cloud over the Emirates so do not be surprised to see the 'new manager bounce' take place on Boxing Day.
scoreline prediction: Arsenal 0-2 Bournemouth
Betting tips and odds
odds games
Home to win: 13/5
Drawing: 29/10
Far to win: EVS