Brentford vs Arsenal Prediction: Bees can hold misfiring Gunners

There is just one Premier League match on the cards on New Year's Day as Brentford host Arsenal at the Gtech Community Stadium.

The Gunners are in pursuit of Premier League pacesetters Liverpool and will look to climb back into second with a victory on Wednesday night, with both Nottingham Forest and Chelsea providing further competition among the chasing pack.

Mikel Arteta’s men head to Brentford fresh from back-to-back league wins over Crystal Palace and Ipswich over the festive period, while the hosts are on a three-game winless run in the league.

However, the Bees have saved their best performances for the Gtech Community Stadium and could be troublesome opponents for Arsenal in West London as they meet at 17:30, in front of the TNT Sports cameras. Below you can find my Brentford vs Arsenal predictions.

Team news

Brentford have a lengthy list of injuries they are dealing with as Josh Dasilva, Ethan Pinnock, Kristoffer Ajer, Sepp van den Berg, Aaron Hickey and Rico Henry are among those unavailable.

Arsenal are without star man Bukayo Saka as well as Takehiro Tomiyasu, Ben White and Raheem Sterling.

Myles Lewis-Skelly could once again be deployed at left-back despite the return of Riccardo Calafiori.

Brentford vs Arsenal Odds

Brentford are 6/1 shots to win this match, while the draw is priced at 4/1. An Arsenal win is 4/9.

Goals are expected in this contest with over 2.5 goals rated 8/15 with under that mark available at 11/8.

Brentford or draw double chance @ 9/5

Despite having finished 2024 with a resolute 1-0 win over Ipswich, Arsenal have not looked entirely convincing of late and they could come unstuck away to Brentford.

The Gunners had 68 percent of the ball against the Tractor Boys last time out but lacked a cutting edge in attack and it was not the first time in December that they fell short up top.

The north Londoners were held to draws with Fulham and Everton earlier in the month and the absence of Saka, who is dealing with a hamstring injury, does not help their cause offensively.

As for Brentford, they have collected 22 of their 24 league points at the Gtech Community Stadium this season and, in front of their own fans, they are overpriced to avoid defeat against Mikel Arteta's men.

Kai Havertz to be carded @ 16/5

It remains to be seen how Arsenal will line up for this contest but if Kai Havertz is involved, he is worth a bet to be shown a card.

The German could return to an attacking position for this game but recently he has been deployed in midfield to allow Gabriel Jesus to feature up front.

Havertz has committed 30 fouls in the league this season - more than any other Arsenal player - and he went into the book against Ipswich last time out.

This will be a fiercer contest and it would be no surprise to see him cautioned once again.

Offers

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