Paul Merson has predicted on SportsKeeda that Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal will win against Unai Emery’s Aston Villa away from home at Villa Park in the Premier League on Saturday afternoon.
The former Arsenal star and Sky Sports pundit believes that the Gunners will pick up all three points from the encounter courtesy of a 2-0 win.
However, Merson does not think that it will be easy for Arsenal to win against a Villa team managed by their former manager Unai Emery.
The Gunners are second in the Premier League table at the moment with 51 points from 22 matches.
Arsenal are level on points with leaders and defending champions Manchester City, who have played 23 games.
The North London club lost to City at the Emirates Stadium in midweek.
Meanwhile, Aston Villa currently find themselves 11th in the Premier League table with 28 points from 22 matches.
The Villans are as many as 10 points above the relegation zone.
It is very likely that under Emery, Villa will end up in the top half of the Premier League table this season.
And maybe, just maybe, they could even challenge for the European spots.
Paul Merson predicts Aston Villa vs Arsenal
Merson wrote: “This is a huge game. This is a must-win match for Arsenal, and they have to bounce back. If they lose or draw this game, I don’t know how they’re going to turn it around. It’s not the worst game in the world for them – I can think of worse places to visit this weekend.
“Aston Villa were doing things right, but they’ve gone bang-wallop-crash all of a sudden and have conceded seven goals in just two games. This game will pit Unai Emery against Arsenal, and he’ll be out to stop them.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if Arsenal don’t win this game. They’re making mistakes and they looked nervous against Manchester City. Pep Guardiola was able to bring on Phil Foden in the second half. Arsenal, in contrast, brought on Fabio Vieira.
“This won’t be like the Everton game. Aston Villa are going to play better football – they’re not going to kick Arsenal around and resort to long balls. This could play into Arsenal’s hands, and I think they should be able to win this game.”
A footnote added: “Prediction: Aston Villa 0-2 Arsenal.”
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