Hulls vs Arsenal – Statistical Preview
Buoyed from last week’s FA cup semi final win over League One’s Sheffield United, Hull will be hoping to edge further away from the relegation battle below them. Hull moved up to 12th on 36 points with a hard fought 1-0 win over Swansea in their last Premier League game. As a dress rehearsal for the F.A Cup final next month this will be a great opportunity for both teams to size each other up before the big day.
Hull’s strike partnership of top scorer, Shane Long, and Nikica Jelavic are sure to be the most likely of the Hull team to penetrate the recently leaky Arsenal defence. The EA SPORTS Player Performance Index shows Long has 6 goals this season with a shot accuracy of 48%. Shane Long is well known for his work rate and this has been proven this season with 51 defensive contributions (tackles, interceptions, blocks and clearances) and 25 tackles won compared to a mere 7 from Jelavic.
Another key player for Hull this season has been Ahmed Elmohamady. Sitting in the centre of the midfield with Tom Huddlestone the Egyptian has shown to be effective in both attack and defence. With an impressive 59 tackles won this season, Elmohamady also has 92 attacking contributions (assists, crosses and dribbles) to his name, more than any other Hull player.
At the heart of the Hull defence is sure to be Curtis Davies. The ever-present centre-back will be looking to keep Arsenal’s Olivier Giroud quiet this weekend. With comfortably the most clearances (278) and interceptions (94) for Hull this season, Davies will be crucial in keeping Arsenal at bay.
Arsenal will continue their fight for fourth position in the Premier League following their 3-1 win over West Ham on Tuesday. Having spent so long at the top of the table at the start of the season fans will yet again hope Arsenal can at least keep their run of 16 seasons in the Champions League going. Lucas Podolski scored a brace and Oliver Giroud provided a classy finish to ensure Arsenal avoided another defeat having gone behind to a Matt Jarvis goal.
With 14 goals this season Olivier Giroud will be keen to find his early season form in the final run in to the season. The EA SPORTS Player Performance Index shows Giroud has taken 71 shots with only 41% shooting accuracy, combined with more fouls than any other Arsenal player, Giroud will hope to help Arsenal into 4th position. With Aaron Ramsey making a substitutes appearance against West Ham, Giroud might feel more quality service will be heading his way.
Lucas Podolski is certainly a man in form scoring twice in the mid week win over the Hammers. Although struggling to hold down a permanent place in the starting eleven, Podolski still has 6 goals this season and 3 assists, with only Giroud and Ramsey scoring more goals. The German also provided 4 attacking contributions against West Ham, the most in the Arsenal team. With this in mind, should Podolski start, he always provides a threat going forward, putting himself in a position to score.
Attacking full backs have been a constant theme for teams this season and Arsenal have two of the best in Kieran Gibbs and Bacary Sagna. Both have strong passing accuracy stats of 78% and 80% respectively but they also provide great attacking support. Without an obvious second striker Arsenal look to the wings to support Giroud who can often be found isolated. Sagna has provided 36 attacking contributions this season, more than the likes of Thomas Rosicky (35) and Oxlade-Chamberlain (29).
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