Arsenal Opens English Premier League Season

• Game: Brentford vs Arsenal
• Location: Brentford Community Stadium
• Time: Friday, 3 p.m. ET
• Television: beIN Sports
• Live Stream: fuboTV

English Premier League Betting Lines

Head to Head

• Previous Matches: 11
• Brentford Victories: 5 (15 goals)
• Arsenal Victories: 3 (11 goals)
• Draws: 3 

Before plunging into the abyss of less competitive categories, Brentford managed to set a winning record against certain teams. That list includes Arsenal, but the Gunners won the last two times they met.

Their last EPL meeting was in 1947 and Arsenal won 1-0. Most recently, they collided in the 2018-19 League Cup and Arsenal won 3-1. Alexandre Lacazette, who remains on Arsenal’s roster, scored one of the goals.

Why Bet on Brentford?

If there’s one word to describe Brentford, it’s resilience. Last season, they finished third in the League Championship and defeated Bournemouth and Swansea in the promotion Playoffs. That put an end to a streak of nine losses in the Playoffs.

Since manager Thomas Frank took over in 2018, the team has won 55.1 percent of its matches. Last season, Frank won Manager of the Month in December.

Knowing the EPL is a lot tougher than the Championship, Brentford made some signings. Kristoffer Ajer, Frank Onyeka and Myles Peart-Harris are ready to contribute from the start. Brentford’s main goal is not to be relegated.

They finished the preseason with a 4-1-1 record, including a 2-2 draw with Manchester United. Most recently, they defeated Valencia 2-1 on goals by Ethan Pinnock and Frank Onyeka.

“A top side from Spain created almost no chances against us. If you take away the goal we conceded, we delivered a top performance. We’re super excited and looking forward to Friday,” said Ajer after the game.

Individually, Ivan Toney is their main weapon. Last season, he led the team and the Championship in scoring with 33 goals. He’s definitely going to be a headache for Arsenal’s defense.

Their expected lineup is David Raya; Kristoffer Ajer, Pontus Jansson, Ethan Pinnock; Sergi Canos, Vitaly Janelt, Christian Norgaard, Rico Henry; Bryan Mbeumo, Saman Ghoddos, Ivan Toney.

Why Bet on Arsenal?

Manager Mikel Arteta knows that this is a crucial season for his continuity. Last season, Arsenal finished eighth thanks to an 18-7-13 record. On the bright side, they finished with the third-best defensive record after allowing 39 goals in 38 games.

For the upcoming season, they lost Martin Odegaard and Dani Ceballos. Nevertheless, they signed Ben White, Albert Lokonga and Nuno Tavares. Also, Lucas Torreira is back after the loan to Atletico Madrid finished.

Arsenal finished the preseason with a 0-1-3 record. They lost to Hibernian, Chelsea and Tottenham.

“In terms of preparation, we have done everything we could. I think we improved a lot as a team, and we worked on a lot of things. The first game is always tricky, and they are a really good opponent,” said Arteta prior to the game.

Arsenal shouldn’t suffer as much as they did last season. Arteta’s ideas are like Pep Guardiola’s, but the Gunners have less money than Manchester City. Nevertheless, they were able to retain Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, one of the best attacking duos in the tournament.

Their expected lineup is Bernd Leno; Hector Bellerin, Ben White, Pablo Mari, Kieran Tierney; Granit Xhaka, Albert Lokonga, Nicolas Pepe, Emile Smith Rowe, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang; Alexandre Lacazette.

Final Analysis, Predictions

As Arteta said, the first game is always tricky. However, sports betting favorite Arsenal is bound to win from the start. They’re not going to play in any international competition, which means they can fully focus on doing well domestically. As for Brentford, nerves can cause them to make more mistakes than usual, but they’ll compete for sure.

I expect both sides to score, with Arsenal winning the first half and the second one finishing with a draw. Don’t forget to check the Soccer Props for Brentford vs Arsenal to increase your winning chances. Our score prediction is offering a +750 price.

Score Prediction: Arsenal 2, Brentford 1

Pick: Over 2½ Goals (-115)