West Brom v. Arsenal: EPL match preview

West Brom vs. Arsenal
Kickoff: Saturday, April 6, 2013, 10 AM EDT
The Hawthorns, West Bromwich
Form: WBA: WWLWDL | ARS: WWWLWW
TV: Fox Soccer Channel
SBN West Brom Blog Machine: Here

Take a look at that form above. See that? Arsenal have captured fifteen points out of a possible 18 from the last six EPL matches.

That's the truth.

No matter what's happened before this run, we're still in contention for at least 4th place. That puts Arsenal 2nd in the league, based on current form, and has helped boost the club - along with stumbles from Tottenham and Chelsea - to a spot where a Champions League qualification spot is nearly within reach. The remaining fixture lists for the three clubs in contention for 3rd and 4th place, additionally, is decidedly in favor of Arsenal as well. It's been stated by many on here and elsewhere, that even though the fixture list lines up for our favorite club, that we can't take any days off simply because of the opponent at hand. The truth is here, so tomorrow's match versus West Brom should give us an idea on whether or not Arsenal can walk out with the needed, and assumed, three points in hand.

As for team news, Jack Wilshere and Theo Walcott are doubtful for the match tomorrow, which means Arsene Wenger will probably continue with the same lineup that he trotted out in last week's win versus Reading. Personally, I would like to see Kieran Gibbs start ahead of Nacho Monreal simply for rotational purposes, since we're going to need to have as many fit and in-form defenders as possible in the run-up to the end of the season. However, while I think that rotation is key regarding the left-back position, I cannot say that I feel entirely comfortable slotting back Thomas Vermaelen into the starting XI. West Brom forward, and fellow Belgian, Romelu Lukaku has proven to be a handful on sheer size alone, and I think he's tricky enough in his movements up front to exploit the aggressive and out-of-form Vermaelen. Additionally, since I'm a fan of his game, I'd love to see Carl Jenkinson starting tomorrow.

Possible Lineup:

Fabianski
Jenkinson--Mertesacker--Koscielny--Gibbs
Ramsey--Arteta
Cazorla
Ox--Giroud--Podolski

Match Prediction:

West Brom 1-3 Arsenal