Premier League Arsenal vs West Ham top tips: Mikel Arteta looking to extend gap at top of table
Mikel Arteta
Premier League action resumes on Boxing Day and Tipstrr's football expert Sergiu Baltuta believes Arsenal should take up where they left off when they host West Ham United in Monday's London derby.
Boxing Day sees the long-awaited return of Premier League action, and West Ham's trip across London to current league leaders Arsenal is one of the most attractive games, as both teams are hoping for a strong restart to their campaigns.
Arsenal are dreaming of their first Premier League title in nineteen years after an exceptional run of form in the first part of the season, picking up an unprecedented 37 points from 42.
Mikel Arteta's team are the current leaders, with a five-point lead over Manchester City. With the current champions not playing until Wednesday, an Arsenal win would extend their cushion to eight points if third-placed Newcastle fail to win at Leicester.
Regardless of the result in this match, Arsenal will remain in top spot, an important detail considering seven of the last ten Boxing Day leaders went on to clinch the Premier League title.
In the international break the Gunners played a series of friendly games against strong European opponents, enjoying success against Lyon (3-0) and AC Milan (2-1), before slipping to a 2-0 home defeat against Juventus last weekend.
Even though he was in the French squad until the end of the World Cup, Wiliam Saliba could be in the starting lineup against West Ham, as he played only 27 minutes in France's seven games and returned to London on Friday.
Arsenal suffered a huge loss at the World Cup, when their main striker Gabriel Jesus was injured in Brazil's group game against Cameroon, with his knee injury requiring surgery and an extended lay-off.
The absence of Jesus leaves Eddie Nketiah as his likely replacement in Monday's starting eleven, while Gabriel Martinelli will also be looking to fill the attacking void left by his Brazilian team-mate.
In the last two years West Ham could be said to have punched above their weight to put themselves in contention for a top six spot, but this season David Moyes' team has experienced something of a reality check during a disappointing campaign so far.
Kicking off the season with three defeats, they entered the international break with three other losses, leaving the Hammers close to the relegation zone after just four wins against Aston Villa, Wolves, Fulham and Bournemouth.
They have been particularly poor away from home, picking up just four points from seven games on their travels (W1, D1, L5) and scoring just three goals in the process.
The club spent a lot of money in the summer, but £35million striker Gianluca Scamacca, has failed to find the net in nine games, and with Michal Antonio also struggling for form, more is hoped of Lucas Paqueta, who emerged as a key player for Brazil in Qatar.
Arsenal are the only team in the Premier League to boast a 100 per cent record in front of their own fans, and they have averaged 2.7 goals across their six home wins.
The Gunners are unbeaten in the last six encounters with West Ham, winning five of them, while their last seven meetings at the Emirates have all been won by the current league leaders, who scored 16 goals in the process, conceding just three.
The extended World Cup break might see the Boxing Day fixtures throw out a strange result or two, but it's hard to imagine Mikel Arteta allowing his players to take their eye off the potential glory that this season could bring.
The absence of Jesus is certain to have an impact, but Arsenal's strength in depth should be enough for them to show their superiority at both ends of the pitch.
