Paul Merson states his prediction for Burnley v Arsenal
Paul Merson looks ahead to Arsenal's trip to Burnley in their final Premier League game of the season
Paul Merson is backing Arsenal to slump to a 2-1 loss to Burnley in their final Premier League game of the season on Sunday.
The Gunners head into the game fresh from having secured their place in the Europa League final thanks to their impressive win over Valencia on Thursday night.
Arsenal are currently in fifth place in the Premier League table and although they could match Tottenham’s points tally, Spurs have a superior goal difference by eight, so the Gunners’ hopes of finishing in the top four are very slim.
The north London side will be hoping to sign off for the season with a win before turning their attentions towards the Europa League final against Chelsea FC in Baku on 29 May.
However, former Arsenal star Merson is tipping the Gunners to suffer a defeat by Burnley at Turf Moor on Sunday.
Writing in his column for Sky Sports, Merson said: “I’m saying this before the Valencia away game but whether Arsenal win or lose in Spain, they’ll probably get beat at Burnley.
“Emery has to rest everyone if they go through, there’s no point putting out a first-choice team and they’ll not get back from Spain until late, and we could see a lot of players we’ve rarely seen in an Arsenal shirt before.”
Arsenal have struggled to find consistent form in the Premier League this season, and they have lost three and drawn one of their last five games in the top flight.
The north London side will still be harbouring hopes of qualifying for the Champions League by beating Chelsea FC in the Europa League final at the end of the month.
