Don't miss the BPL action from King Power Stadium at 12:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, August 20, 2016. Catch every moment of the match live on CNBC.
Soccer Odds at BookMaker.eu
Leicester City +180
Arsenal +140
Draw +250
Over/Under 2.5
Odds Analysis
The oddsmakers still haven't quiet bought into Leicester City, though admittedly, the Foxes would have been 4 to 1 moneyline choices in this match last year at this team. They're still +180 underdogs in this match at home, a line which might seem like a bit of an insult for the defending champs.
The total looks rather flat at 2.5, but the -150 vig on the over tells us that there are more than likely going to be at least three goals scored in this one.
Key Injuries
Arsenal is still playing the waiting game on a number of key players right now. Wenger is in a rush to get Olivier Giroud, Laurent Koscielny and Mesut Ozil back in the fold for his team after they spent the summer killing their bodies in Euro 2016. None of the three played for the Gunners in Match Day 1 against Liverpool, and all three are up in the air for this one. Per Mertesacker is out for at least a few months thanks to a knee injury suffered in Arsenal's preseason tour in the United States.
Leicester City enters Match Day 2 without any injury woes of note.
Recent Form
As we alluded to at the top, both Arsenal and Leicester City were beaten in Week 1, and we're not all that sure which one was more shocking.
Surely, the Gunners had the tougher pill to swallow, as the loss to Liverpool could end up being pivotal in the race for the Champions League at the end of the season. The four goals allowed was the true concern for a team which was built on pure grit and hustle more than anything else.
Leicester though, took the worst loss possible. Hull City is supposed to be the worst team in the top flight this season and will likely immediately get sent back down to the Championship after this year. The Foxes were beaten 2-1, and now we have to certainly ask whether this team is even capable of staying up again, let alone challenging for another title.
Free Soccer Betting Pick
The Foxes are flat out being overpriced here, especially if any of the European stars are back for the Gunners. Leicester City was a fantastic story last year, but this is a new year and a new time, and there's just no way this team with its general lack of talent finishes even in the Top 10 for our money.
That's really all we have to say to suggest that there's value here. Throw in the fact that Wenger always seems to find a way to keep Arsenal competitive when he really needs a win to ease the pressure on his job, and you've got the makings for a match in which the visitors are going to swipe all three points, even if the end result seems relatively unlikely after looking at what the two teams did a year ago.
BPL Odds: Arsenal 2, Leicester City 0
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