Portsmouth hosts Arsenal in a premier league showdown on May 2, 2009. The match is not very important for deciding the title, but still both teams know the significance of the match very well. Portsmouth sitting just 7 points above the relegation zone will be looking to win the home clash against Arsenal in what would guarantee their survival in premier league this season. Arsenal, on the other hand, now wants to close the gap on third-placed Chelsea in the point table without giving any chance to Aston Villa to clinch a Champions league berth of next season. So, you can see both teams will be looking to clinch 3 points from the match.
Match: Portsmouth vs Arsenal, English Premier League 2008-09
Date: 2 May 2009
Venue: Fratton Park, Portsmouth, Hampshire, England
Kick off: 15:00 BST (British Standard Time)
Live Radio: BBC Radio Five Live
Ahead of the match, Arsenal is facing a number of injury woes. Striker Eduardo picked up a groin injury during the 1-0 loss at Old Trafford against Manchester United. Mikael Silvestre also sustained a groin injury from the Manchester United game in Europe. Both the players will surely miss the trip to Fratton Park on Saturday. With Gael Clichy and William Gallas are already out injured, I think Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger would have some tough time with the formation of his back line.
The situation got aggravated when goalkeeper Manuel Almunia, who single-handedly saved Arsenal from a humiliating defeat at Old Trafford, took a minor knock, and Wenger could rest Alumnia, considering the second leg semi final match against Manchester United in Europe on Tuesday. Striker Robin van Persie is already out injured and is also doubtful for the home leg match against Manchester United. Another striker Emmanuel Adebayor also took a minor blow in the 1-0 loss at Manchester United, but I do not think that Wenger would leave London without the Togo international as he is already missing two strikers in Eduardo and van Persie.
With 65 points from 34 outings, it seems that Arsenal does not have any realistic opportunity to win the premier league title. Moreover, with a 10-point lead over fifth placed Aston Villa, Gunners are not in a position from where they could lose the Champions league berth to Villa. Naturally, they would like to go all out for European glory. They could manage a small margin defeat against Manchester United away from home, and have a realistic chance to make it to the Rome final in Europe. That is why, I would not be surprised if Wenger features a weakened team. However, Arsenal will surely have their Russian playmaker Andrei Arshavin back into the squad after missing the Manchester United match in Europe as he is cup tied.
For Portsmouth, they are not in a safe position, sitting just 7 points above the relegation zone. So, they would try their best to come out with 3 points from the match. Portsmouth did not have a good start to the season, but they could manage to stick around the middle of the point table and is now intended to ensure their survival in premier league. They would miss the service of Niko Kranjcar who is currently sidelined with knee injury. However, Jermaine Pennant and Younes Kaboul could make a come back to the starting line up of Portsmouth against Arsenal at home.
Online Live Score and Updates
Here, I am giving some names of websites where you can enjoy the live score and updates of the match:
Live Score
Goalzz
Footie Scorez
Sportpress
Goal.com
I would not pick up any favorite. A struggling Portsmouth taking on an Arsenal side, depleted in strength, indicates a hard fought affair at the Fratton Park. So, I am looking forward to seeing an exciting match between Arsenal and Portsmouth. Now, let us see if the two premier league teams can live up to the expectation of the football fans.
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