Premiership lead on the line for Arsenal and United

Soccer Betting Lines

11/02/2007 - London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The top two teams in the Premiership will tangle at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday when old rivals Arsenal and Manchester United renew acquaintances.

The Gunners have been one of the big stories of the season as they have come flying out of the gate with an unbeaten record that includes eight wins in 10 games. The departure of captain and star striker Thierry Henry was expected to slow this team of young stars, but they have cruised through the first 10 games in great form and are coming off of a hard-fought 1-1 draw at Anfield against Liverpool.

United did not get off to such a great start, going winless in its first three games. However, the club has rebounded to win its last eight matches in league play and looks like the hottest team in England at the moment.

"We couldn't be going into the game in any better shape or form," United manager Sir Alex Ferguson said at a pre-match press conference. "But I'm sure Arsene Wenger will say the same thing."

Much of the reason for United's success has to go to the strike tandem of Wayne Rooney and Carlos Tevez. After another foot injury set Rooney back at the start of the season, United struggled to score goals and had to rely on its defense to win games.

Since Rooney's return, however, he has teamed with Tevez to form one of the most dangerous duos in the league. The two have combined to score eight goals, and with Cristiano Ronaldo chipping in three tallies of his own, the Arsenal defense will have plenty to do to keep this trio off the scoreboard.

United has received good news throughout the week concerning injuries as well. Defender Patrice Evra is once again ready to play after shaking off a calf injury, while Owen Hargreaves, Louis Saha and Michael Carrick should also be ready to go.

Hargreaves in particular will be key since he will be charged with slowing down Arsenal's playmaker in the midfield, Francesc Fabregas.

The Spanish midfielder is the catalyst for the Arsenal attack, with five goals on the season and plenty more helpers. Everything runs through Fabregas, so shutting him down will be United's top priority.

Arsenal's other big gun is striker Emmanuel Adebayor, who leads the team with six goals. He will be the main target for Arsenal in the absence of Robin Van Persie, who is out with a knee injury.

Adebayor is a big, physical target, but United will have the services of both Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic to combat the Togo international.

The game shapes up as a very even contest, with both teams bringing plenty of firepower to the occasion. While Arsenal has been good defensively this season, it is United's stingy back line that could make the difference.

With just four goals conceded in 11 matches, the Red Devils have the best defensive record by far in the league, and according to Vidic, that is something that the team takes great pride in.

"At the back, we will take just as much pride from a clean sheet as our strikers will from scoring a goal," Vidic told the club's website. "Arsenal will be a big test but I believe we can stop them and have another clean sheet to our names."

In other action in England on Saturday, Liverpool tries to remain unbeaten when the Reds visit Blackburn, Chelsea attempts to maintain its place among the top four with a win at Wigan, Portsmouth and Newcastle are both top-half sides and get together at St James' Park, while Tottenham tries for just its second win of the season at Middlesbrough. Fulham has earned three draws in its last four games and entertains Reading, Everton hosts a Birmingham side that has lost three of its last four and last-place Derby visits Aston Villa.

On Sunday, disappointing Bolton travels to West Ham, and Manchester City tries to rebound from its 6-0 drubbing at the hands of Chelsea last Saturday when the team hosts Sunderland on Monday.