TALKING TACTICS: Arsenal v Swans

2nd March

Ahead of tonight game against Arsenal, we have teamed up with football stats experts WhoScored.com to preview the Premier League encounter.
 
The Swans could feel somewhat unfortunate not to come away from White Hart Lane with a positive result against Tottenham on Sunday afternoon after a spirited performance in the capital.
Having frustrated Spurs for much of the fixture, the Premier League title contenders eventually came away with all the spoils, though they were made to work hard for all three points by goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski.
Despite ending up on the losing side, Fabianski gained a better WhoScored.com rating (9.42) than any other player on the pitch, which was enough to secure a place in the Premier League team of the week. A total of 12 saves was more than any other goalkeeper has made in an English top-flight match this season, with the 30-year-old deserving his plaudits.



He will now aim to put another excellent performance on the board as Swansea remain in North London for their trip to Arsenal. Fabianski comes up against his former side, hoping to replicate his stunning showing against the Gunners in last season's fixture.
Swansea secured a 1-0 win at Arsenal last May, with the shotstopper earning a man-of-the-match attaining WhoScored.com rating of 9.77 in the league meeting.
Arsene Wenger's side will be looking to bounce back from Sunday's morale-sapping 3-2 defeat at Manchester United against Swansea as they look to haul themselves back into the title race.
However, their home form of late leaves a lot to be desired. The Gunners have scored just four goals in their last six competitive matches at home, with their profligacy contributing to a tense atmosphere around the stadium in recent outings.



Providing Swansea can remain compact, Fabianski has a much stronger chance of replicating last season's man-of-the-match showing on his former ground.
Only Joe Hart (25) and Simon Mignolet (21) have secured more clean sheets in the last two Premier League seasons than Fabianski (19) and Arsenal have every right to be concerned that their former goalkeeper can further dent their title hopes tonight.
The Gunners are expected to look towards striker Olivier Giroud as a means of hitting the back of the net against Swansea. The Frenchman will likely come back into the side having started the 3-2 defeat to United on the bench, though his poor goal return recently makes for concerning reading for the hosts coming into this encounter.
Giroud has failed to net in his last nine competitive outings and has traditionally struggled against Swansea, netting just two goals in eight appearances against the South Wales side.
If Fabianski can turn out another stellar performance against the Gunners, Swansea's chances of a repeat of the 1-0 win secured at the Emirates last term increase significantly.

*WhoScored.com is a unique website and one of the fastest growing in the sports industry, specialising in the in-depth analysis of detailed football data. Provided with unique stats, they compile and create comprehensive analysis on the major European divisions, including live match stats and player ratings. You can follow @WhoScored and their editorial assistant Ben McAleer on Twitter.

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