Arsenal can confirm their top four berth by the time the Premier League matchweek 14 comes to an end if they get all three points against a struggling West Ham side at the Emirates on Saturday. The Gunners are currently fourth in the table with 28 points, while the Hammers are 16th in the league at the moment.
Arsene Wenger's men saw their EFL Cup (League Cup) hopes for the season come to an end in the midweek following a 2-0 defeat against Southampton. Can that loss motivate the Gunners to get a big win in the English league on Saturday? That remains to be seen.
Good news is that Arsenal haven't lost any of their last five games of the Premier League and that momentum could stay on with them for now. Mathieu Debuchy (hamstring) and Santi Cazorla (ankle) aren't a part of the match owing to injuries. Also, it remains a doubt whether striker Olivier Giroud will be available as well, after picking up a groin problem.
Wenger also gave an update on the fitness of Danny Welbeck, who resumed his training with the team recently. "It's great [that he is back in training], but he is at least four weeks away from playing a game," the Frenchman mentioned.
The Hammers, meanwhile, will be without top scorer Michail Antonio, defender Aaron Cresswell and Diafra Sakho. However, good news remains that Andy Carroll is back.
"He's a player that offers something special, he is one of the reasons why we were so prolific last season in front of goal, why we were so versatile, so dangerous, why we scored so many goals and why we finished so high," said West Ham coach Slaven Bilic of Carroll.
Schedule
West Ham vs Arsenal is set to kick off at 11 pm IST [5:30 pm GMT, 12:30 pm EST] on December 3.
Where to watch live
India: TV - Star Sports Select HD 1. Live streaming - unavailable.
UK: TV - BT Sport 1. Live streaming - BT Sport Live.
USA: TV - NBC Sports Network. Live streaming - NBC Live.
Radio commentary - TalkSport, BBC Radio 5 Live
Live streaming (subscription based) - Arsenal Player.
Live score - EPL twitter.
