PSV vs Arsenal prediction, odds and betting tips
PSV and Arsenal are both already through to the knockout stage of the Champions League ahead of their showdown on Tuesday.
Find the latest match odds for PSV vs Arsenal. All odds are provided by our best-reviewed football betting sites. Odds are subject to change.
- Draw - 5/2 with bet365
- Over 2.5 goals - 8/13 with bet365
- Eddie Nketiah to score any time - 11/5 with bet365
The hard work is done for both of these sides. This is one of four Champions League groups in which we already know the identity of the two teams that will be progressing to the round of 16.
What is more, Arsenal are already guaranteed top spot. They have 12 points to their name after five rounds of fixtures, four more than PSV in second.
The Dutch’s side tally of eight has proved enough to wrap up second place ahead of Lens due to a superior head-to-head record.
The pressure is off on Tuesday, then. This is a free hit for both teams, which makes the outcome difficult to predict.
On the one hand, Mikel Arteta will probably relish the opportunity to make a few changes to his side ahead of the hectic festive schedule.
On the other hand, the Arsenal head coach will be keen to see his team return to winning ways after a 1-0 loss to Aston Villa at the weekend.
That result, combined with Liverpool’s 2-1 triumph over Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park, saw Arsenal end the Premier League weekend in second spot.
There were still positives to take from their performance at Villa Park. Arsenal fell behind early on, but they created chances thereafter. For all that Villa were gritty and resolute, a draw might have been a fairer result.
Arsenal have some big games on the horizon. Brighton & Hove Albion await on Sunday, after which Arteta will take his team to Anfield to face Liverpool. Two London derbies against West Ham United and Fulham between Christmas and New Year will not be straightforward either.
In that light, it would make sense for the Gunners to name a weakened team at the Philips Stadion.
This is a tough one to call until we see the two teams’ starting XIs, but a weakened Arsenal side could drop points on Tuesday.
PSV are enjoying a fantastic season so far. Not only are they through to the Champions League knockout phase with a game to spare, Peter Bosz’s team are cruising in the Eredivisie.
A 2-0 victory over Heerenveen on Friday saw PSV move 10 points clear at the summit of the standings in the Netherlands.
PSV are leaving Feyenoord, AZ and Twente in their wake, with Ajax well behind top spot after a terrible start to the season.
This was by no means guaranteed. PSV finished second in the Eredivisie last term, then saw their manager Ruud van Nistelrooy resign amid reports of a player revolt.
The jury was immediately out on Bosz, who had had mixed success in recent jobs at Borussia Dortmund, Bayer Leverkusen and Lyon.
But PSV are flying on his watch. Incredibly they have won all 15 league matches so far this term, scoring 52 goals and conceding only six.
Arsenal won the reverse fixture 4-0 with one of their best performances of 2023/24, but a draw would be a good result on Tuesday if Arteta does indeed shuffle his pack.
As the above statistics demonstrate, PSV have had little trouble putting the ball in the back of the net domestically.
They are averaging close to 3.5 goals per game in the Eredivisie, although that figure drops to a more modest 1.4 in the Champions League.
Still, this is a typical Bosz team which likes to play on the front foot and commits bodies to attack.
We should expect goals in this one, then. Even if Arsenal do ring the changes in forward areas, there is more than enough quality in reserve to pose a threat to a PSV backline that has been breached nine times in this competition.
Indeed, a hypothetical front three of Reiss Nelson, Eddie Nketiah and Leandro Trossard would give Bosz’s men plenty to think about.
PSV cannot catch Arsenal in top spot, but they will view this as a chance to lay down a marker against one of the favourites to win the tournament.
And the fact that neither team has anything to lose should encourage positive football from both the hosts and the visitors.
There is no doubt that Gabriel Jesus is still Arsenal’s first-choice striker. He has started several games in a row, including the 1-0 loss to Aston Villa last time out.
Jesus is a fantastic footballer who excels at linking the play and bringing his attacking team-mates into the game. But by his own admission, he is not exactly the deadliest finisher.
Nketiah does not offer as much outside the penalty area as Jesus does. He is also not on the Brazilian’s level overall, but he is a centre-forward who comes alive in the 18-yard box.
Nketiah will probably start on Tuesday, with Arteta likely to keep Jesus - who has struggled with injuries at times in 2023 - fresh for this weekend’s meeting with Brighton.
If he does get the nod, the England international is a good pick in the anytime goalscorer market.
- Location: Philips Stadion, Eindhoven, Netherlands.
- Date and time: Tuesday 12 December 2023, 5.45pm.
- How to watch: TNT Sports 2.
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