Arsenal vs Liverpool Preview, Team News, Likely Line-Ups, Key Man + Predicted Score

Arsenal will be out for revenge when they play host to Liverpool at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday in the fifth round of the FA Cup.

The Gunners title challenge was dented when they were thrashed 5-1 by the visitors at Anfield last week so they will be keen to make amends tomorrow and book their place in the quarter finals.

Arsene Wengers side were held to a 0-0 draw by Manchester United on Wednesday but at least the clean-sheet should restore some confidence in the back-line, and the result left the north Londoners sitting one point off leaders Chelsea so they are still well placed in the title race.

Liverpool on the other hand were forced to come from behind twice to see off Fulham 3-2 at Craven Cottage, with the result seeing Brendan Rodgers men close the gap on the top three to just one point.

However, the two giants will put league matters to one side tomorrow as they battle it out for a place in the last 8 of the FA Cup and both sides will be well aware this is a great opportunity to secure some silverware this season with Manchester United, Chelsea, Tottenham and tomorrow’s losers all out before the quarter finals stage.

Team News

Arsenal will be without midfielder Santi Cazorla after the Spaniard fell ill on Thursday night. He was still in bed on Friday so is highly unlikely to play any part in this game.

Mathieu Flamini returns from a three-game ban and he’s expected to come straight back in while Mikel Arteta is also likely to start as he’ll miss the midweek clash with Bayern Munich through suspension.

Wenger could make some changes as he bids to keep his players fresh for Wednesday, with Lukasz Fabianski, Carl Jenksinon, Nacho Monreal, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Lukas Podolski and Nicklas Bendtner among those hoping for a recall.

Thomas Vermaelen, Aaron Ramsey, Theo Walcott, Abou Diaby and Kim Kallstrom all remain out through injury.

Rodgers has named an unchanged side for each of the last four games and he’s expected to stick with largely the same line-up again tomorrow.

The only change at the back could see Daniel Agger come in for Kolo Toure after the Danish international made a successful return from injury in midweek.

Jordan Henderson is a doubt though after undergoing surgery on a broken wrist. The midfielder had to play with painkillers and a cast on Wednesday before having surgery the following day but he could play with a cast again tomorrow.

Glen Johnson is back in full training but this game is likely to come too soon, while Lucas Leiva, Mamadou Sakho and Jose Enrique remain out through injury.

Likely Line-Ups

Key Man

Daniel Sturridge: The English hitman is in excellent form lately and his partnership with Luis Suarez and Raheem Sterling has been deadly in recent weeks. Any of the trio could be potential key men in this game but we think the in-form Sturridge is the man to watch tomorrow.

Predicted Score

Arsenal 2-1 Liverpool: This is shaping up to be an intriguing game and it will be interesting to see how Arsenal bounce back from last weeks drubbing. However, we have the feeling the Gunners are just going to edge this one.

What would be your starting eleven and what’s your predicted score for the game? Share your views below.