Arsenal will face Liverpool on Sunday at the Emirates, and Dimitar Berbatov, on the Metro, and Paul Merson, on Sportskeeda, have dropped their predictions. However, before we go into what the two said about the game, let us analyse the two teams in this title-deciding clash.
After 22 league games, Liverpool leads the league with 51 points. They are rightly at the top of the league, having won 15 games, drawn six, and lost only one. Currently, they are in good form; they are on a run of four league wins, and they haven’t lost a league game since Tottenham beat them 2-1 on September 30th; they are unbeaten in 15 games.
Arsenal, on the other hand, are third, 5 points behind Liverpool, but have the same number of points as Manchester City, who are second owing to goal difference, though it is worth noting the defending champions have played a game less. Arsenal’s form has slipped in recent weeks; in 22 games, they have 14 victories, 4 draws, and 4 losses.
The Gunners are on a two-game winning streak after losing their previous two league games. Arteta and the boys should hope that they have regained their good form, as they appeared to have “lost their way.”
Berbatov does not believe Arsenal will win the game; instead, he believes it will end in a 2-2 draw, though he went on to admit it will be an entertaining game. The former Manchester United striker defended his prediction, saying on the Metro:
“The biggest game of the weekend and could really impact the title race. Liverpool won here not long ago in the FA Cup, but both teams are pretty equal in my eyes. It should be a great game, and I am going to say another entertaining draw.”
Merson, an Arsenal legend, is also not confident that Arsenal can beat Liverpool, believing the game would end in a 2-2 draw, despite admitting the fact that Arsenal sorely needed to win for their title ambitions. Merson said on Sportskeeda:
“This is once again a must-win game for Arsenal. If they lose, they are out of the Premier League title race, and a draw is no good either, so they absolutely have to go for it.
“Before Liverpool’s demolition of Chelsea, I was quite bullish about this game and thought Arsenal would win. My opinion has changed now as the Reds were absolutely unbelievable.”
“A draw isn’t ideal for Arsenal, but I don’t think Liverpool will lose too much sleep if they share the spoils away from home. ”
Arsenal has not won a game against Liverpool this season; they have already played each other twice. They drew 1-1 at Anfield in their first encounter this season and were defeated 2-0 at the Emirates in the FA Cup at the start of the year.
The hope is that Arteta and his team can redeem themselves and beat Liverpool this Sunday, even if Merson and Berbatov don’t think they will.
