Aston Villa Vs. Arsenal: Arsenal Preview

Arsenal travel to Aston Villa tomorrow to try and steady themselves and return to winning ways. The Gunners have been shaky of late and their record of late shows it. They have lost 4 of their last 6 games in all competitions, something which needs to be rectified if they wish pundits to recognize them as serious title challengers once again. Having lost last weekend's league match against Tottenham and their midweek champions league fixture against Braga it is pertinent that Arsenal win against Villa to restore confidence ahead of the next crucial champion's league matchup against Partizan Belgrade. The gunner's must win to progress to the knockout phases; anything less and their future would depend on the outcome of the other group fixture.

Arsenal vs. Aston Villa: Villa Preview

Aston Villa plays host to Arsenal at Villa Park this weekend, and will be longing for crucial points that could vault them into the top half of the table. An injury depleted Villa side will be relieved by the return of both John Carew and James Collins from calf injuries, respectively. However, history is not on Villa’s side; The Midlands club has claimed only one victory in its previous 28 league clashes with the Gunners. One of the most interesting storylines ahead of the matchup is Frenchman Robert Pires’ first fixture against the team he served so well from 2000 to 2006. The 37-year-old had a prolific goal scoring record of 84 tallied in 284 total appearances for the North London club. It will certainly be intriguing to see if Pires can conjure up one last moment of magic, even if it be across the pitch from the white and red.

Sporting Club Braga Vs. Arsenal: Post Game

Fabregas asking to be substituted

Arsene Wenger and his men must look inside themselves and face the harsh realities of their current situation. After having thrown away three points on the weekend and spurned a chance to go top of the table, Arsenal let lowly Braga fight its way to a two-nil victory on decisive match day five of the Champions League. Two easily avoidable defensive lapses exposed the flat back four and now threaten to jeopardize Arsenal’s spot in the last sixteen. A far cry from the performance that led to a six-nil thrashing of Braga back in September, Arsenal looked lethargic, uninspired, and weak at the back.

Arsenal vs. Tottenham: Post Game

Kaboul scoring the winner

At what has been a fortress in past seasons, this past weekend Arsenal slipped to their third home defeat of the season. The Gunners lost 3-2 against their bitter rivals Tottenham, and it was the first time that Arsenal had lost at home to Tottenham since 1993, and it left Arsenal players and fans alike reeling. Arsenal started well completely dominating the first 45 minutes and rightfully went in 2-0 leaders at halftime courtesy of a goals from Samir Nasri, and Marouane Chamakh. Spurs came out rejuvenated in the second half, which combined with Arsenal's failure to get out of first gear, meant they were able to stun the Gunners with 3 second half goals. Gareth Bale, Rafael van der Vaart, and Younes Kaboul all notched goals for Spurs as they claimed a rare away victory against Arsenal.

Arsenal vs Sporting Braga: Preview

Reeling after its shock second half collapse against Tottenham, Arsenal looks to book its passage into the knockout stages of the Champions League with a win on match-day five five against Sporting Braga. Arsenal thrashed Braga 6-nil back in September, but will be lacking lots of offensive firepower; in particular, the absences of Robin Van Persie and Andrey Arshavin will be sorely missed. Masterful tactician, Arsene Wenger, has warned his troops not to be complacent ahead of the clash with the Portuguese outfit as they were when they dropped points against former striker Eduardo and Shakhtar Donetsk a fortnight ago. Arsenal heads into a particularly challenging stretch of its season as the winter break approaches, and the crucial three points and a spot in the last 16 gained from a victory today would surely ease Wenger’s mind.

Arsenal Vs. Tottenham: Arsenal Preview

It’s derby day tomorrow in north London as Arsenal take on their neighbors Tottenenham Hotspurs at the Emirates. Arsenal sit two points behind table leaders Chelsea, but with the blues’ form dipping of late, Arsenal will want to take 3 points from tomorrow’s game to apply pressure on the west London outfit. Chelsea have lost two of their last three, whilst Arsenal have done the opposite by winning two their last three. In what could prove to be one of the season’s turning points, it’s important that Arsenal show up with all the energy required to win a north London derby. Many of Arsenal’s diverse squad took part in this week’s array of midweek fixtures; Samir Nasri, Kieran Gibbs, Bacary Sagna and Cesc Fabregas were amongst some of the Arsenal players who represented their countries during midweek. All of these players must overcome their fatigue in order to compete at the highest level. One player who came from international duty with a little more than fatigue was Andrei Arshavin, who picked up a small hamstring injury in Russia’s loss to Belgium. Arshavin along with Tomas Rosicky (hamsting) and Jack Wilshere, who came off injured after 45 minutes last week, face late fitness tests to assess whether they will be able to take part in tomorrow’s fixture. Encouraging news from the medical side of things is that Robin van Persie played 45 minutes for the Dutch national team, and Theo Walcott, who is on the verge of regaining full fitness, clocked some time for the three lions this week.

Arsenal Vs. Tottenham: Tottenham Preview

The 147th incarnation of the North London Derby is set to be played tomorrow, and looks as delightful a fixture as ever. Arsenal heads into the weekend clash with full confidence at second place in the table, while struggling Tottenham looks to replicate its wonderful Champion’s League form domestically after having struggled at the Reebok before the International Break. Not having won on Gunner's soil since 1993, Spurs look to take three full points after its valuable win back in April at White Hart Lane when the clubs last met.