Arsenal head to West Ham two points clear with three games left to keep City at arm's length
Arsenal travel to West Ham on Sunday afternoon with a two-point lead at the top of the Premier League and three matches to go, knowing that a clean win at London Stadium would put serious pressure on Manchester City for the run-in.
The Gunners have not won the league since 2004 and Mikel Arteta's side hold a slim cushion that City reduced to two on Saturday after their win over Brentford. Arsenal still have West Ham away, Burnley at home and Crystal Palace away to navigate, with a Champions League final against PSG in Budapest on May 30 looming after their 2-1 aggregate semi-final win over Atletico Madrid.
Set pieces look like the route in
Arsenal lead the Premier League for set-piece goals this season, the kind of weapon that travels easily to a London Stadium where West Ham have struggled to defend dead balls throughout the campaign, the kind of vulnerability that would worry any manager facing a side this drilled at delivering Rice corners onto William Saliba and Gabriel’s heads.
West Ham fighting for survival
Nuno Espirito Santo's hosts arrive 18th in the table after a 3-0 defeat at Brentford last weekend left their survival outside their own hands, and the Hammers are now a point behind Tottenham heading into kick-off. Santo confirmed on Friday that he has a fully fit squad to choose from. West Ham have won two of their last six against Arsenal and are unbeaten in their last six home league matches, with draws against Manchester City and Manchester United banked in that run.
Team news at the Emirates end
Arteta said in his pre-match press conference that there were no fresh concerns, but Mikel Merino (foot) and Jurrien Timber (groin) remain on the long-term list. The 4.30pm BST kick-off in east London will be the first of three Premier League fixtures left for both Arsenal and City, with the title likely to be decided over those three weekends.
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