Gary O’Neil’s team currently sit in 19th position having won just once in their last 10 games, and while that victory did come on their travels against Wolves two weeks ago, the Cherries haven’t won consecutive Premier League away games since October 2018.
Meanwhile we’ll be aiming to claim a fourth-straight win to maintain the cushion we have built up at the top of the league, boosted by knowing we’ve claimed all three points in each of our last eight matches against newly-promoted clubs.
However, things have been a different story since the World Cup. No team has won fewer than the five points the Cherries have collected since, nor scored fewer than their four goals. That, coupled with the fact Bournemouth have conceded a league-high 48 goals, saw them slip into the relegation zone for the first time towards the end of January.
A recruitment drive saw nearly £75 million spent on strikers Dango Ouattara and Antoine Semenyo from Lorient and Bristol City respectively, as well as Dynamo Kyiv centre-back Illya Zabarnyi, with last month seeing them lose to Brighton, draw with Newcastle United and beat Wolves before a 4-1 loss against Manchester City, leaving them one point from safety.
Leaders Arsenal need to keep up their winning ways in order to maintain hope of clinching the Premier League title and bringing an end to a nearly two-decade drought. A Saturday home match against second-from-bottom Bournemouth is a must-win in that respect.
Arsenal’s closest challengers for the title, defending champs Manchester City, will have played earlier in the day against a strong Newcastle side, and there’s a distinct prospect that the Gunners could have a chance to extend their five-point lead heading into the weekend.
This Gunners team look equipped to take that opportunity should it present itself, especially after demolishing Everton 4-0 in midweek. Manager Mikel Arteta’s side claimed a 3-0 win on Bournemouth’s home turf earlier this season.
Bournemouth are fighting for their lives at the other end of the table. Four defeats in a row immediately after the World Cup break put them in deep trouble and Gary O’Neil’s side are currently on a run of just one win in their last nine Premier League matches, which doesn’t bode well for a trip to a team who have roared right back into form. That triumph did at least come in their last away outing at Wolves, although Arsenal are likely to be a completely different proposition. The Cherries currently find themselves in penultimate spot in the table, a point from safety. Matias Vina, Junior Stanislas and Marcus Tavernier are all injury doubts for the visitors, who have lost all of their six previous matches at Arsenal.
Should they earn that victory against Bournemouth, it would represent their 20th in 26 matches. The famous Invincibles team had 19 victories at the same point of the 2003/04 season, the last time that the Gunners won the English title.
Arsenal vs Bournemouth: last five meetings
August 2022: Bournemouth 0-3 Arsenal, Premier League
January 2020: Bournemouth 1-2 Arsenal, FA Cup
December 2019: Bournemouth 1-1 Arsenal, Premier League
October 2019: Arsenal 1-0 Bournemouth, Premier League
February 2019: Arsenal 5-1 Bournemouth, Premier League
Arsenal vs Bournemouth prediction
Arsenal have roared back to top form after a slightly sticky spell and you’d expect them to have far too much for a struggling Bournemouth side.