Premier League: Now the Gunners Take Aim at the Black Cats

Sunderland vs Arsenal

Sunderland isn’t the easiest place to go these days…but I’m not sure that will worry Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal.   

The league leaders are aiming to maintain, or even stretch, their six point advantage at the top of the Premier League when they head North East to visit Sunderland in the late Saturday kick-off. The Gunners have the eye of the tiger, devouring all in front of them, and the Premier League 2025 betting odds have installed them as odds on favourites to win the 2025 title, after a 22 year wait.  

They face a team which has exceeded all expectations over the first ten games of their first season in the top flight since 2017, and Regis De Bris’ Sunderland are flying high in fourth place; so Arteta will set his team up as he always does…to win.  

Arsenal visited Slavia Prague in the Champions League on Tuesday and left with a 3-0 win, a result which took them top of the European table too.

 

Talking Points

Can Sunderland keep up the pace?

In a recent SBOTOP review of the Black Cats I pointed out that De Bris’ side have had a relatively gentle start to their return to the Premier Division, with wins over the current bottom three, Wolves, Nottingham Forest and West Ham United, and another potential struggler Brentford, while losing to Manchester United and Burnley. But then they went and beat Chelsea 2-1, the second result of a three match unbeaten run yielding seven points.

They are yet to face Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester City and, of course Arsenal. But you can only beat what is in front of you and Sunderland have done exactly that.

And with 18 points the Black Cats might possibly be half way to survival already.

Captain Granit Xhaka could well turn out to be the signing of the summer and he scored his first goal for Sunderland in a 1-1 draw with Everton on Monday night. And the impressive set of Premier League 2025 results, the Black Cats have turned in, owe a lot to the nous and leadership skills of the Swiss enforcer. While Sunderland have plenty of athleticism and pace in their team there isn’t much Premier League experience elsewhere in the side and, if the going gets tough, the younger players will look to Xhaka to lead them through.

And he will be relishing a match-up against his old mates at Arsenal.

Despite sitting fourth, the Black Cats are only three points ahead of 11^th place, and If they are still in the top half at the end of the calendar year then I’d say Sunderland should be fine; and it will be fascinating to see how they cope with the best team in the league on Saturday.

 

Do the Gunners have a weakness?  

Arsenal have become a winning machine. Runners up for the last three campaigns they added three key players in the summer transfer window; a midfield general in Martin Zubimendi, a speedy winger in Eberechi Eze and, crucially, a genuine centre forward in Viktor Gyokores.

In front of keeper David Raya there is a settled and watertight back four of Gabriel and  William Saliba in the middle and Riccardo Calafiori and Jurrien Timber on the flanks. Declan Rice sits alongside Zubimendi in the middle, and Eze and Bukayo Saka are either side of Gyokores, with Leandro Trossard sitting in a roving role.

And skipper Martin Odegaard is still sidelined!           

The Gunners managed the game against Burnley superbly last week, winning 2-0 with goals from Gyokores and Rice, and snuffing out a late Clarets onslaught. Gyokores picked up a knock at Turf Moor, but the difference between this Arsenal side and those of previous seasons is the strength in depth. With the likes of Ben White, Mikel Merino, Mile Lewis-Skelly, Christian Norgaard and Ethan Nwaneri on the bench, and Gabriel Jesus, Gabriel Martinelli and Kai Havertz in the physio room with their skipper….these look like the Champions elect to me.

 

History

Arsenal are unbeaten against Sunderland in their last 12 meetings, winning nine and drawing three. The Gunners won the last meeting 5-1, a league cup tie in 2021, and we have to go back to 2012 to find a Sunderland triumph, a 2-0 FA Cup victory.

In terms of recent form Sunderland are in great shape with three wins, two draws and one defeats from their last six games but then the Gunners have won the last ten, conceding just one goal – to Newcastle back in September.  

 

Betting Tip

If the Gunners do have a weakness and Sunderland can find it then the SBOTOP odds on a home win of 8.00 will make some Black Cats fans very happy! The Draw is at 4.75 and an Arsenal win is at 1.36 and I do expect Arteta’s men to be ruthless on Tyneside, as they were at Turf Moor last week.

   

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