Arsenal vs Bournemouth predicted XIs: Confirmed team news and probable line-ups
Arsenal continue their Premier League title chase on Saturday afternoon when they host Bournemouth at 12.30pm, with the match being shown live on TNT Sports 1 in the UK.
The Cherries are hoping to end a great campaign with a flourish, but the Gunners need three wins from three to put pressure on Manchester City with the title race out of their hands.
Gunners are doing all they can
Manchester City’s game in hand makes them the favourites to lift the Premier League title, but Arsenal are making a much better fist of things than last season.
While the Gunners collapsed late in the campaign last term, they’ve hung in there to top the table this time around with little over two weeks left to go.
Arsenal came through the trickiest game of their run-in last weekend, holding off a Tottenham fightback to win 3-2. Despite their half-time 3-0 lead, the Gunners didn’t look great throughout, but holding on to win suggests this young side is more mentally resilient than a year ago.
The clash with Bournemouth is Arsenal’s penultimate home game of the season, with a trip to Old Trafford and a home clash with Everton rounding out their campaign. They’re capable of taking maximum points from all three, but they still need City to slip up.
The Gunners will likely look back on last month’s 2-0 loss to Aston Villa as the moment which cost them if the champions win each of their remaining games. However, that was a rare misstep in an impressive 2024 so far.
Arsenal have won 13 of their 15 Premier League games since the turn of the year. They lost to fourth-placed Villa and took a 0-0 draw away from the Etihad in their only two slip-ups in that stretch.
The Gunners bounced back from a poor December to put themselves in the mix, meaning their position in this title race is very different to last year. They’ve outperformed a City side who tend to peak in the second half of the campaign since New Year’s Day, suggesting that Mikel Arteta’s team are building the ruthless mindset necessary to win the title.
BetMGM sign-up offer: Get £40 in bonuses when you bet £10
Not signed up to BetMGM yet? Here's how eligible readers* can take advantage of their welcome offer:
- Open an account at BetMGM using this link.
- Select the Sports Welcome Offer.
- Get the offer from the ‘My Offers’ page.
- Deposit and place a £10 bet at odds of 1/1 (2.0) or greater.
- When it settles, unlock £40 in bonuses
New customers only. 7 days to place qualifying bet of £10+ at 1/1 (2.0) to receive 4 x £10 Free Bets: 1 x £10 Acca, 1 x £10 Horse Racing, 1 x £10 Football, 1 x £10 Bet Builder. 7 day expiry. Exclusions apply. Stake not returned. 18+. T&Cs apply.
Arsenal vs Bournemouth team news
Jurrien Timber is closing in on a return for Arsenal, with the Dutchman making two appearances for their Under-21s recently. The summer signing was injured in their Premier League opener against Nottingham Forest. He is expected to feature before the end of the campaign, potentially as early as this weekend.
Outside of that, Arsenal have a full-strength side to pick from. The Gunners are unlikely to move away from the side which raced into a 3-0 lead at Spurs last time out.
Bournemouth could be without as many as nine players for this trip. Chris Mepham, Illya Zabarnyi and Tyler Adams are all considered doubts for the visitors.
The Cherries will be without Antoine Semenyo, Marcus Tavernier, Luis Sinisterra and Romain Faivre through injury. Suspended full-back Milos Kerkez is also absent, leaving them with some holes to fill at the back.
Arsenal vs Bournemouth Predicted XIs
Arsenal (4-3-3): Raya; White, Saliba, Gabriel, Tomiyasu; Odegaard, Partey, Rice; Saka, Havertz, Trossard
Bournemouth (4-4-2): Travers; Smith, Senesi, Kelly, Ouattara; Scott, Cook, Christie, Kluivert; Unal, Solanke
