Next Sunday, 28th of December 2014, two historical English sides, West Ham and Arsenal, will go head-to-head at Boleyn Ground for round 19 of the Barclays Premier League, on a match that, in case of win, will allow the Gunners to overcome the Hammers at the league table, since both teams are currently separated by one point only.

Arsenal’s Boxing Day match against QPR was anything but easy, as the visitors took advantage from Giroud’s red card early on the second-half to pile on the pressure and, after Austin’s goal on the 79th minute, they still enjoyed some opportunities to level the score. The Gunners were better for the first forty-five minutes and, led by Alexis Sanchez (who missed a penalty early in the game), they went to the break winning by 1-0. Arsenal showed some signs of inconsistency during the second-half, especially after Giroud was sent off for unsportsmanlike conduct on the 53rd minute of the match, but they managed to increase their lead by the hand of the experienced Czech playmaker Rosicky ten minutes later. The Gunners enjoyed, as usual, from more ball possession percentage but they had the same amount of goal attempts as their opponents, something that is not very common when Arsenal are playing at Emirates Stadium.

Thanks to their win, the Gunners managed to close the separating them from West Ham to just one point on the league table, thus increasing the pressure on the Hammers, who, in case of defeat next Sunday, may drop several places at the table and be kicked out the European Competitions’ zone.

For that particular match, Arsenal’s boss, Arsene Wenger, will not be able to rely on the contribution of the French international Giroud, who is suspended, and of Ozil, Arteta, Koscielny, Wilshere and Ramsey, all sidelined due to injury.

As for West Ham, their Boxing Day match against Chelsea is definitely something they want to quickly forget. The Hammers made a fool of themselves against the all-powerful league leaders and unsurprisingly lost the match by 2-0. Another defeat against the Gunners next Sunday could become a huge blow to the team’s remarkable campaign this season and Sam Allardyce will certainly use that fact to motivate his players for the upcoming match.

Although the Hammers have shown some excellent moment so far this season, Arsenal are favourites for the match at the Boleyn Ground next Sunday. Nevertheless, a draw is probably the most likely outcome for such a close match.

West Ham

Stats: W-3 L-1 D-1

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Arsenal

Stats: W-3 L-1 D-1

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Possible Line-ups

West Ham (4-3-3) - Adrian -Jenkinson - Tomkins - Reid - Cresswell - Kouyate - Noble - Nolan - Amalfitano - Sakho - Carroll

Arsenal (4-2-3-1) – Szczesny - Monreal - Mertesacker - Debuchy - Gibbs - Flamini - Rosicky - Cazorla - walcott - Sánchez - Welbeck

Prediction

West Ham 1 Arsenal 1