Bournemouth vs Arsenal Odds
| Bournemouth Odds | +500 |
| Arsenal Odds | -200 |
| Draw | +350 |
| Over / Under | 2.5 -188 / +150 |
Arsenal will travel to the Vitality Stadium to face Bournemouth this Saturday, where the Gunners will look to extend their unbeaten run to seven matches to start the season.
A win on Saturday would take Arteta's men to 17 points, just one less than their runner-up finish during the 22/23 season. While it has not been the goalscoring parade we saw to begin last season, there is an argument to be made that Arsenal has been just as dominant so far to start this campaign.
Bournemouth have had quite the disappointing start in their second consecutive year in the Premier League. Drawing three and losing three out of their first six matches is not the start that the Cherries would have hoped for. However, their opening fixtures have not been a walk in the park by any means, which is why Bournemouth currently sit 17th in the table with just three points.
Here is my breakdown of the Bournemouth vs Arsenal odds and my pick for the fixture.
Bournemouth
It is still early in the season, but it looks like Bournemouth fans may be in for another long and stressful Premier League campaign.
There have been flashes of positivity for Bournemouth so far this season as they are still trying to adapt to the pressing play style of Andoni Iraola. They rank top 10 in both high turnovers and passes per defensive action (PPDA), which shows that these players are pressing and disrupting teams in the attacking third. The issue that Bournemouth have run into is that the teams they have played are good enough to play through that initial press and find loads of space between the lines, with this weekend potentially being more of the same against an elite Arsenal side.
This high pressing style is a risky way of playing, especially against a team who will be challenging for the title this season. Until Tyler Adams is healthy and Bournemouth have a true ball winning midfielder in the center of the pitch to disrupt the build up play of teams like Arsenal, their matches will be end-to-end.
This style of play that Iraola is implementing has improved Bournemouth's attack so far this season. They have totaled 7.5 xG against West Ham, Liverpool, Tottenham, Brentford, Chelsea and Brighton. Those are arguably six of the top 10 teams in the Premier League this season, and while 7.5 after six matches is not world class, it is a respectable number that has earned them three draws. If they can turn the ball over high enough against this injury plagued Arsenal side, then they could see some success in this match given their improved attacking quality.
Arsenal
Arsenal are coming off of an intense 2-2 draw at the Emirates in this season's first edition of the North London Derby, where they saw multiple key players injured.
They have been bit by the injury bug in a big way with Gabriel Martinelli and Thomas Partey already being ruled out and Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice and Leandro Trossard all doubtful to feature in this match. Those are some of the first names on the team sheet for Mikel Arteta, who is going to have to get creative in this match.
Experimenting is nothing new for Arteta this year as he is constantly trying to find new ways to control each match Arsenal are in. The Gunners have not been scoring for fun like they were at times last season, with Arteta's men currently seventh in the league in goals scored, eighth in xG and 10th in SoT%. However, they have been controlling games like we have not seen before from this side. They are the closest thing we have in the league to Manchester City and you can see Arteta trying to replicate that in the way Arsenal have been playing so far this season.
We cannot yet know what lineup Arteta is going to put out in this match, but we do know that he does not want to risk any more players picking up knocks before their Champions League match on Tuesday.
Bournemouth vs Arsenal
Pick & Prediction
Bournemouth are still figuring out their pressing system and have been good at disrupting play in their attacking third. I question whether they will be able to stop this Arsenal side from playing through that press or whether Bournemouth will still press that high because of the quality of Arteta's men.
I believe that as good as Arsenal are, this match will be prioritized over Arsenal's Champions League match on Tuesday. Arteta does not want to risk any more injuries and already missing at least five key players from the starting lineup is a daunting task for any manager, especially against the pressing style that Bournemouth are likely to play.
I see little value on either side just based on the numbers, which is why I will be playing the spot instead and taking Bournemouth +1.25 at -125 or better.
