Premier League preview: Arsenal v Sunderland

Robin van Persie waves to Arsenal fans

He’s gone, and Arsenal move on. The good thing is at least they are used to it by now.

The departure of Robin van Persie for Manchester United was long suggested and has now finally come to pass, and although the Dutchman is seemingly leaving behind a lot of anger at the Emirates Stadium, it is important to remember that he’s leaving behind some very good players as well.

Arsène Wenger – who must surely have seen this situation coming – could give debuts to a German international with over 100 caps, the top scorer in the French league last season and a two-time European Championship winner when the Premier League campaign gets underway on Saturday. This is what passes for a crisis at Arsenal.

Yet Lukas Podolski, Olivier Giroud and Santi Cazorla have joined a club who are still having a bit of an identity crisis. How can they be seen to be ambitious if their star men keep turning their backs on them?

The answer of course is by their performances on the pitch, and if there is to be one positive found from the sale of Van Persie it’s that it has been done before a ball has been kicked in anger in the league. Arsenal have plenty of time to adjust.

The new captain Thomas Vermaelen will lead out his team at an expectant Emirates, where the Gunners fans will no doubt have a chant or two for Van Persie, but should quickly settle down and enjoy the football on offer from players who actually want to play for them. Whether one of those is Alex Song – a target for Barcelona – looks doubtful.

They’ll be taking on Sunderland as their campaign kicks off, with Martin O’Neill no doubt looking forward to getting back to football after presiding over one of the quieter pre-seasons in the Premier League.

Quiet that is until this past week, when the Black Cats’ interest in the Wolves striker Steven Fletcher became common knowledge, and the Molineux club turned down a couple of bids for the want-away Scot.

It remains to be seen whether O’Neill will return with a larger offer, but the Northern Irishman was able to wrap up the altogether simpler deal to bring forward Louis Saha to the club on a one-year deal this week, making him the second summer arrival after the defender Carlos Cuellar.

So O’Neill looks to be ready to go with what he had last season, which was impressive displays from the likes of James McClean, Stéphane Sessègnon and Sebastian Larsson all buzzing around a central striker, Nicklas Bendtner, who has now returned to Arsenal.

He’s unlikely to get on the pitch as the post-Van Persie era kicks off, but it should start with a victory which would placate home supporters.

Four of the other five Premier League matches which kick-off on Saturday afternoon feature managers taking charge of their clubs in the league for the first time, whilst it’s a debut for both men in the dugouts at The Hawthorns.

Steve Clarke – a coach at Liverpool as recently as June – takes his West Brom side into battle against Brendan Rodgers’ Reds with the potential for debuts for forwards Romelu Lukaku and Markus Rosenberg no doubt exciting home fans.

Liverpool have already stepped up their fitness levels with a Europa League tie against the Belarusian side Gomel though, and it could be that extra sharpness which gives them the edge as Rodgers gets ready to give a debut to Joe Allen and a first Reds league appearance to Fabio Borini. The surprise £3million signing of Moroccan winger Oussama Assaidi won’t be completed in time for kick-off.

At Upton Park, West Ham can celebrate a return to the big time by inflicting defeat upon Paul Lambert in the Scot’s first match in charge of Aston Villa, whilst the club he left behind, Norwich City, will find it tough to take anything from Fulham at Craven Cottage, where Chris Hughton make his Canaries bow.

Michael Laudrup’s first taste of Premier League football sees his Swansea side up against it when they go to a re-energised QPR, whilst Brian McDermott – a relative stalwart in the Reading hotseat for three years – takes his promoted side into a match at home to Stoke City that they should be confident of taking at least a point from.

Mark Jones – follow me on twitter

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