As was the case in 2022, London rivals Arsenal and West Ham United meet at the Emirates Stadium for their first post-Christmas Premier League fixture on Thursday evening.
The Gunners spent December 25 atop the table thanks to a 1-1 draw with Liverpool on Saturday evening, prior to which the Irons ran out 2-0 winners over an off-colour Manchester United.
Match preview
© Reuters
On account of Aston Villa's failure to prolong their astonishing Premier League home victorious streak against Sheffield United on Friday night, Arsenal and Liverpool emerged into the Anfield cauldron in the knowledge that any winner would be guaranteed the 'winter champions' title on Christmas morning.
Mikel Arteta's men were on course to snap their 11-year streak without a top-flight victory on Liverpool's turf through a fourth-minute Gabriel Magalhaes header - their quickest-ever goal at Anfield in the Premier League - but a venomous Mohamed Salah finish drew Jurgen Klopp's men level just 25 minutes later.
Escaping unharmed from a contentious Martin Odegaard handball decision and five-on-one counter-attack, Arsenal rode home to North London with the point which kept them above the Reds in first place, although Gooners ought to have reined in their Christmas celebrations, as they are yet to win the league in a season where they sat at the summit on December 25.
While Villa missed the chance to go top on Boxing Day, Liverpool did not pass up the opportunity to bump Arsenal down to the silver medal spot, and a streak of just one win from their last four outings in all tournaments is underwhelming at first glance, but home is still where the heart is for the hosts.
Indeed, a 2-0 beating of Brighton & Hove Albion earlier this month marked the Gunners' fifth Premier League win on the bounce at the Emirates Stadium, and it has been over two years since Arsenal last lost an all-London Premier League affair at home, winning eight and drawing four such matches since Chelsea's two-goal victory in August 2021.
© Reuters
However, the Irons have already experienced a slice of success against their red and white counterparts in this season's EFL Cup, and while their hopes of springtime supremacy in that tournament were crushed by Liverpool, David Moyes witnessed his charges respond in exemplary fashion against a former employer.
Neutrals fans could have been forgiven for changing the TV channel after a drab first half between West Ham and Man United, but the irrepressible pairing of Jarrod Bowen and Mohammed Kudus came good in the second half to condemn Erik ten Hag's out-of-sorts charges to an all-too familiar Premier League defeat.
Signing off at the London Stadium in 2023 in perfect fashion, the Europa Conference League champions were knocking on the Champions League door in sixth place in the table, but as wa the case with Arsenal, they were also demoted down one spot to seventh owing to Man United's beating of Villa.
The two-goal triumph over Man United also represented a fifth top-flight win from seven games for Moyes's in-form men, although their one defeat in that sequence did come in a London derby away from home, where an illness-affected troupe were blown to smithereens in a 5-0 Fulham demolition.
As mentioned, though, West Ham came up trumps in convincing fashion when Arsenal made the trip to the London Stadium for November's EFL Cup fourth-round tie - defeating the Gunners 3-1 - but Arteta's men won by the same scoreline on Boxing Day 2022, where the legendary Arsene Wenger was in attendance for an evening of Emirates euphoria.
Team News
© Reuters
While Liverpool did not emerge unscathed on the physical front from their meeting with Arsenal, Arteta's side have no new injury concerns to work around for Thursday's game, but the Gunners boss does have a disciplinary issue to factor in for the derby.
By virtue of collecting his fifth booking of the season, the improving Kai Havertz will not take to the field against West Ham due to suspension; his absence should see Jorginho deployed in the midfield trident with Martin Odegaard and former Hammer Declan Rice.
Jurrien Timber (knee), Fabio Vieira (groin), Thomas Partey (thigh) and Takehiro Tomiyasu (calf) are still sidelined for the hosts, but there is optimism that the latter two could return for Arsenal's FA Cup third-round clash with Liverpool on January 7.
As for West Ham, the dreaded winter bugs were still plaguing Moyes's squad before their win over Man United, where neither Nayef Aguerd nor Maxwel Cornet were well enough to be involved in that clash, but the former was on the mend last week.
Cornet would be unlikely to force his way into the XI anyway, but Aguerd should be fit enough to take the place of ex-Arsenal defender Dinos Mavropanos, who should be joined on the bench by another erstwhile Gunner in the shape of Lukasz Fabianski.
Michail Antonio represents the visitors' solitary injury concern with his lingering knee problem, and while he is now running outside again, he is unlikely to be considered for first-team selection for another couple of weeks.
Arsenal possible starting lineup:
Raya; White, Saliba, Gabriel, Zinchenko; Odegaard, Jorginho, Rice; Saka, Jesus, Martinelli
West Ham United possible starting lineup:
Areola; Coufal, Zouma, Aguerd, Emerson; Soucek, Alvarez; Kudus, Ward-Prowse, Paqueta; Bowen
We say: Arsenal 2-1 West Ham United
Arsenal deserved nothing and got nothing from their EFL Cup battle with West Ham several weeks ago, but with Premier League points on the line at the Emirates Stadium, Arteta's men are a different proposition entirely.
A resilient West Ham unit will still make life difficult for Arteta's men, but the Irons have not kept a top-flight clean sheet on the road since April, and such shortcomings will likely prove fatal in North London.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Ben Knapton
