After a promising four match undefeated streak that stretched throughout the month of November things were looking good for the Canaries. Dean Smith’s men looked determined to work their way out of the relegation zone, but unfortunately December has not been so kind to them. Norwich were last in action against Aston Villa and lost to them 2-0 at Carrow Road. This was their third consecutive defeat and they still occupy the bottom spot on the EPL table with 10 points. Notably the Canaries failed to find the back of the net in any of these three defeats. They have now only scored one goal in their last five matches and only scored eight goals the entire season. As if things weren’t bad enough for Norwich already, they have also had to deal with a Covid outbreak in their camp which has left them without a number of their first team players. Their fixture last weekend against West Ham had to be postponed and their lack of playing time going into this clash will most certainly not work in their favour. It looks like Norwich are pretty much right back where they were before Dean Smith took over the reins and with only two wins this entire season it’s going to take nothing short of a miracle for the Canaries to avoid defeat on Sunday.
The Gunners look to be one of the few teams that have managed to escape the Covid outbreak that’s raging through the EPL right now and were able to take the field last weekend against Leeds. Arteta’s men gave Leeds their second drubbing in the space of a week with a comfortable 4-1 win when they visited Elland Road. As a result, Arsenal have finally managed to get themselves back into the Top 4 where they sit in fourth place with 32 points. They have now won three games on the trot and very impressively found the net nine times in those three matches. Their total goal tally for the season now sits at 27 which makes them the fifth highest scoring team in the league which is considerably better than the position they were in just a couple of months ago. Their defense is still far from being anywhere near the best in the league, but with only one goal conceded in their last three clashes it’s quite clear that there has been a great deal of improvement in that department. Six points still separate the Gunners and Chelsea in third, but if they are able to keep firing on attack and remain tight on defense like they were able to do against the likes of Leeds and Southampton they should be able to chase down third place in no time.
With Norwich jumping in and out of the EPL over the last few years there haven’t been too many clashes between the two sides. However, they did clash at the Emirates in September this year where Arsenal managed to snatch a 1-0 win. During 2019 and 2020 there were only two other clashes, one which was won by Arsenal while the other ended in a draw. One positive for the Canaries is that they have managed to hold Arsenal to a draw at Carrow Road in two of their last three EPL meetings there, but since this stat stretches well over six years it’s unlikely to count in their favour.
Prediction
Even if Covid wasn’t a factor I still would have given Norwich no chance in this clash. Arsenal are clearly the much better side going into this clash and unless the Canaries can pull off a miracle at home with their deeply crippled side they won’t be bagging any points in this clash. Right now Arsenal’s attack is red hot and has netted at least two goals per match in their last three EPL clashes. They also managed to put five past Sunderland in the EFL Cup on Tuesday which simply adds to the momentum they already had going into this clash. Furthermore, Norwich have let in at least two goals in two of their last three clashes and there is also a good chance the defense will be a bit rusty considering they didn’t take the field last weekend. The last time these two teams met there was only one goal in the match but looking at the current state of each team I find it hard to believe we will see a low-scoring game. You can get around 1.80 for over 2.5 goals which is an absolute steal in my eyes, while I also like the look of only one team to score and Arsenal to win. Emil Smith Rowe has netted in his last three starts for his side and along with Gabriel Martinelli, who scored three goals in his last two appearances, they look like the best goalscorer options.
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