Shearer Backs Arsenal to Beat Palace on Prem Fixtures Run
Alan Shearer said Arsenal should “breeze through” their prem fixtures run, backing them to beat Burnley at home and then Crystal Palace away. The former Newcastle United striker also predicted Palace could field a reserve team on the final day because their Europa Conference League final comes three days later on May 30.
Shearer on Palace and Arsenal
“They have to be [confident],” Shearer said on The Rest is Football podcast. “I mean, Burnley at home and Palace away. Palace are going to play a reserve team and that's up to them by the way, because they've earned that right to do that.”
He added: “It's their football club and they've got an agenda that they need to protect themselves in terms of winning their trophy, so they're entitled to put whatever team out they want. So yeah, they have to be super confident don't they?” Arsenal beat West Ham United 1-0, and that result pushed the title race back in their favour after Manchester City had cut the gap to two points with a 3-0 win over Brentford on Saturday.
Manchester City Still in Range
City still have a game in hand against Palace on Wednesday, May 13, and that keeps the race live while Arsenal finish against Burnley and then Palace. Shearer’s point was simple: if Palace rotate heavily, Arsenal’s final league opponent may not be at full strength when the title race reaches its last day.
Micah Richards pushed back on the idea that the fixture would be simple even against a second-string Palace side. “But it's not, it's not going to be. I mean, on paper, yes. But look at the QPR game with Man City, you think that was going to be an easy game - it wasn't,” he said.
Richards added: “I just feel as though, yeah they probably will get it done now and they've got to be super confident. Totally agree, but Palace.” He also said: “He's going to play second string but players who have got something to prove also so that can be sometimes be the hardest games, you know?”
Arteta’s Arsenal Push
Mikel Arteta has framed the closing stretch around the pressure of the last 10 months, saying after Arsenal’s win over West Ham United: “The courage, determination and quality they've shown all week as well, there's so much at stake with everything we've done for 10 months, and now is the moment that matters.”
Arsenal also have the Champions League final against Paris Saint-Germain on May 30, so the final week carries more than one major demand. The league title race may hinge on how Palace approach May 27, three days before their European final against Rayo Vallecano.
