Crystal Palace vs Arsenal Odds
| Crystal Palace Odds | +450 |
| Arsenal Odds | -163 |
| Draw | +300 |
| Over / Under | 2.5 -110 / -110 |
Arsenal head to Selhurst Park on Monday to battle their London rival, Crystal Palace, for the conclusion of match week 2.
The Gunners started their season off with a win, pulling off a 2-1 opening weekend result against Nottingham Forest in a game where they dominated the ball but lost the xG battle 1.18 to 0.83.
Crystal Palace also walked away with three points on match day 1, defeating the newly promoted Sheffield United 1-0.
Will Arsenal pass their first road test of the season and show signs they are ready to take the next step in winning the league, or will Crystal Palace pull off the upset and show they are a top-half team with Roy Hodgson under the helm?
Here is my breakdown of the Crystal Palace vs Arsenal odds, and my pick for the Premier League match on Monday.
Crystal Palace
Hodgson's return to Crystal Palace in March of last season can certainly be considered a big accomplishment after he successfully rescued the Eagles from relegation and ended the season, earning points in eight of their last team league matches to finish 11th.
Palace carried that form over into their opening weekend game. However, despite their recent results, the Eagles' play style is no different than it was in Hodgson's first stint with the club. In the long run, that didn't exactly ensure positive results. The now 76-year-old has a career win percentage of 36.9% and has never led the Eagles to a top-half finish.
Now, he lost his best attacker, Wilfried Zaha, who left for Galatasaray this summer. Palace were already in the bottom-fifth of xG last season with Zaha, and though they pulled out the full three points, they lack creativity in the attacking third.
They may be able to get away with their lack of creativity on Monday, however. Palace are a different team in front of their home crowd. They only lost five league matches at home last season, though one of those five was at the hands of Arsenal.
Arsenal
Arsenal had an active summer transfer window, adding four new faces to their squad. After their opening match, it is clear that Mikel Arteta is still learning how to fit his new players into their fluid system.
Declan Rice, the most expensive signing of the four, had an impressive debut in the midfield. However, with him occupying the center mid-role, Arteta pushed Thomas Partey to an outside back role, and he certainly did not look like his confident self in the unfamiliar position.
The Gunners' other headline signing in the summer, Kai Havertz, played the full 90 minutes as well. His debut raised more eyebrows than applause. Rather than playing in his primary position as an attacker, he was positioned in the midfield, a spot he has lined up in just three times in his last 50 games.
While Arteta will likely test out another starting XI on Monday, his road tactics will still be strong. The Gunners finished with the best road record in the league last season, earning an impressive 10 clean sheets and averaging 2.05 points per game away from the Emirates.
Crystal Palace vs Arsenal
Pick & Prediction
Crystal Palace are a strong home team, but they will need goals if they are to take down Arsenal. The Gunners have scored in 22 of the last 24 matches and in 11 of their last 12 away games.
Moreover, Arsenal won both their matches against Crystal Palace last season with a +5 goal difference, and this season Arsenal should only be stronger while Crystal Palace are perhaps weaker.
This is the type of match Arsenal must win if they are to be a true title contender this season. There is not much value i backing them on the moneyline, but I will take them at -0.75.
Pick: Arsenal -0.75 (-140 via DraftKings)
