Arsenal vs. Barcelona Preview, Odds, Predictions, Picks

Arsenal and Barcelona have a solid history, with the two teams often exchanging players and even meeting in the UEFA Champions League finals once. Barca was better back then, and that stayed in the memory of all the Gunners fans who, after that, always have a special motive to win once their favorites meet the Catalan giant. This will be club friendly, but nevertheless, the English unit would want to win. The same applies to Barca, who was supposed to play with Juve earlier this week, yet that didn’t happen.

More previews for club friendly games:

• Chelsea vs. Newcastle
• Real Madrid vs. Manchester United

Preview

Arsenal (+160) was defeated by Manchester United 2-0 a few days ago. The Gunners were blitzed by the Red Devils between the 30th and 37th minute, allowing two goals, and after that, couldn’t do anything against the United’s defensive tactics. 

Declan Rice and Jurrien Timber made their first start, which wasn’t that impressive, but Arteta slowly introduces these two guys into the system and tries to adapt them to the same. Arsenal’s manager made numerous substitutions in the second half, giving all the players a chance to appear on the pitch.

From what we saw so far during the preseason, there will be no massive changes in Arsenal’s tactics. They will still try to dictate the temp through the possession and be very fast in the transition when possible.

Barcelona (+125) has the same approach on the field, with Blaugrana holding the ball as much as possible, but unlike Arsenal, who is more offensive-minded, Xavi’s unit is focused on defense. Many don’t like to see this Barca, as their games don’t bring too many goals.

Xavi decided to put the result ahead of the beauty and attractivity, and for the moment, he is doing just fine. The former Spanish captain won La Liga last year, having one of the best defenses in the history of domestic competition. 

Barca was supposed to play with Juve earlier this week, but that game was canceled. They have only one test since the preseason began, against Vissel Kobe, whom they defeated 0-2. It was Andres Iniesta’s last performance for the Japanese unit. 

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We didn’t find any information about injuries or absences.

Head to Head Games

Three years ago, these two clubs met in a club friendly, which ended with Blaugrana’s 2-1 victory. In the 2006 UEFA Champions Finals, Barcelona won with the same result after losing at halftime. Sol Campbell brought the lead to the Gunners, but Eto’o and Belleti flipped the situation in the finish. 

Prediction

Even though this is a friendly game, Xavi will demand the same from his players, and that’s to take the ball and keep it in their possession. Arteta has a similar strategy, maybe a bit more offensive, yet he, too, likes to control the pace that way. We don’t expect too many goals due to all this. Barcelona isn’t like before, and people must realize they look more like Atletico Madrid now. This is a new era for them, which relies on defense, so under 2.5 goals is our pick here, with the odds on that set at -115.

Pick: Under 2.5 goals -115