After a VAR call to end all VAR calls went Arsenal's way in their tense encounter with West Ham United last time out, the Gunners are on the cusp of ending their long wait for the Premier League crown.
Leading Manchester City by two points, they will be looking to make it five and heap pressure on Pep Guardiola's FA Cup winners ahead of their Tuesday night encounter against Bournemouth. In order to do that, though, they have to first overcome the challenge of an already relegated Burnley and overcome the pressure that they themselves must be feeling.
Here's everything you need to know about Monday's game.
How to watch:
The match will be shown on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Premier League in the UK, USA network in the U.S., JioHotstar in India and Stan Sport in Australia. You can also follow ESPN's live updates.
Key Details:
Kick-off time: Monday, May 18 at 8:00 p.m. BST (3:00 p.m. ET; 12.30 p.m. IST; and 5:00 a.m. AEST, Monday).
Venue: Emirates Stadium, London.
Referee: Jarred Gillett
VAR: Craig Pawson
Injury and Team News:
Burnley
Connor Roberts, D: strain, OUT
Jordan Beyer, D: knee, OUT
Josh Cullen, M: ACL, OUT
Arsenal
Jurriën Timber, D: muscle, OUT
Mikel Merino, M: foot, OUT
Ben White, D: knee, OUT
Talking Points:
Perfect game for Gyökeres to shine
Viktor Gyökeres may have had a rocky start at the Emirates but come Monday he has a chance to enter an elite list.
Only Thierry Henry (11 in 99-00), Olivier Giroud (10 in 12-13) and Alexandre Lacazette (11 in 17-18) have scored 10 or more times at home in their first season for Arsenal... and Gyökeres walks into this match having scored nine (of his total 14 Prem goals his season). And he does so against the kind of opposition that he was brought into help smash aside.
His physicality and presence have been key for Arsenal breaking down low blocks set up by lower table sides and Mikel Arteta will be looking to his striker to repeat the trick one last time a home this season.
Early goal is key to calm restless fandom
And that ties neatly into our next talking point.
Twenty years is a long time to wait for a trophy, and as Arsenal close in on a drought-ending title, the nervousness is palpable.
If Arsenal don't break down Burnley soon after kick-off, that feeling of impending doom could well rise through the Emirates faithful, choking the air with that heavy feeling of anxiety and worry.
It's exactly the kind of atmosphere that's seen the Gunners collapse under before... and one they will be desperate to avoid. If Gyökeres and co. can manage to get on the scoresheet early, it will do the Arsenal fans (and in turn, their team) a world of good.
Pride vs (poor) record for Burnley
Burnley have a horrible record against Arsenal -- they have won just one game against the Gunners in 19 Premier League games and they have never scored more than once against them (the most any one side has faced another in the Prem without scoring twice or more in a match) -- and all signs point to a comprehensive home win.
Burnley are sitting just three points ahead of rock-bottom Wolves... and the already relegated visitors will have only pride and a desperate need to address their horror head-to-head record against the Gunners to motivate them. Manchester City, meanwhile, will be hoping that is motivation enough.
Warding off complacency
The Premier League title ought to be enough motivation for any professional footballer, but with a three-point lead and already relegated opposition the chance that complacency could creep in is high.
You could dismiss the suggestion, but we only have to go back to February to Wolves and a 2-0 lead converted to a 2-2 late on to see that Arsenal are prone to crumble under pressure. They've handled it brilliantly in this run-in, their defence iron-clad, taking their chances when they get them and generally doing everything right -- and they need to keep at that 100% intensity come Monday.
What do the numbers say?
Burnley don't just have a bad record against Arsenal; they simply have a bad record this season -- they've won just one of their last 27 Premier League games (D8, L18). That's just one more point than they won in their first nine games (W3, D1, L5)
Arsenal, meanwhile, have won all 10 of their Prem matches against sides who have already been relegated that season.
Arsenal are also unbeaten in their last 44 Prem home games against promoted sides. They've been so ruthless, they won their last 15 by an aggregate score of 43-9.
Arsenal have only lost their final home game of a season in one of the last 28 seasons (W23, D4)
By sharp contrast, Burnley have only won their final away game of a Prem season twice in their nine Prem campaigns.
