Arsenal v Wolves predictions: In-form Gunners can bolster their top-four hopes

Free football tips, best bets and analysis for Arsenal v Wolves in the Premier League on Thursday.

Where to watch

Amazon Prime Video, 7.45pm Thursday

Best bet

Arsenal to win & under 3.5 goals
1pt 23-20 BoyleSports, Coral, Ladbrokes

Team news

Arsenal
Gabriel Martinelli is available after suspension and Takehiro Tomiyasu is pushing to be involved after returning to the bench at the weekend.

Wolves
Yerson Mosquera and Willy Boly are back in training but Rayan Ait-Nouri is a doubt.

Match preview

Arsenal fans have been starved of Champions League football for the last five seasons but their top-four hopes have risen after back-to-back victories and they can win a key battle by defeating Wolves at the Emirates.

The first of Arsenal's February successes was a 1-0 triumph at Wolves which came despite a 69th-minute red card for Gabriel Martinelli.

Mikel Arteta's side were put under pressure in the final 25 minutes, but Wolves struggled to carve out clear-cut opportunities and could have no real complaints over the outcome.

Wolves' loss to Arsenal was their only setback over the last eight Premier League games, which have yielded one draw and six victories, including away wins over top four rivals Manchester United and Tottenham.

Bruno Lage's side have shown they can compete with the teams around them and have the incentive of knowing that a victory over Arsenal would lift them to fifth place.

Wolves have fought hard to get themselves into such a strong position but face a potentially season-defining week with capital contests against Arsenal and West Ham to negotiate over the next four days.

Wolves' squad looks as healthy as at any point of the season but it isn't the biggest and there seemed to be a few tired legs at the weekend when they dug deep to win 2-1 at home to Leicester.

Lage's outfit overcame the Foxes despite having a 36 per cent share of possession and losing the shot count 17 to 11, and they were grateful for their opponents' lack of composure in front of goal.

There was a lack of a killer instinct from Leicester, which is understandable given their general lack of confidence and the absence of Jamie Vardy.

However, Arsenal are playing with plenty of belief and their Premier League home record of eight wins, two draws and two defeats commands respect.

Arteta's side won 2-1 at home to Brentford on Saturday but the margin of victory could have been much wider after a confident, dominant performance.

The game showed how far the Gunners have come since the opening day of the season when they were humbled 2-0 at the Brentford Community Stadium.

Arsenal were pointless after three games but they have averaged 2.1 points per game since then, and if that consistency can be maintained they will probably be playing Champions League football next season.

Diligent defence has been key in recent times with Arsenal conceding four goals in their last nine league fixtures and any success over Wolves is likely to be solid rather than spectacular.

Arsenal have scored more than two goals just once in their last seven home league games, but five of them have been victories and another low-scoring win looks a probable outcome.

Key stat

Arsenal and under 3.5 goals has been a winning wager in five of the Gunners' last seven home league games.

Inside info

Arsenal

Penalty taker Alexandre Lacazette
Free-kick wizard Martin Odegaard
Set-piece aerial threat Gabriel
Card magnet Granit Xhaka

Wolves

Penalty taker Raul Jimenez
Free-kick wizardRuben Neves
Set-piece aerial threatRomain Saiss
Card magnetRuben Neves

Not got a bet365 account? Bet £10 & get £50 in free bets

Open account offer. Minimum deposit requirement. Free Bets are paid as bet credits and are available for use upon settlement of bets to value of qualifying deposit. Minimum odds, bet and payment method exclusions apply. Returns exclude bet credits stake. Time limits/T&Cs apply. 18+ begambleaware.org

CLAIM OFFER HERE

MORE FREE BETS

Today's top sports betting stories

Follow us on Twitter @racingpostsport