Paul Merson predicts Arsenal’s Premier League meeting with Crystal Palace to end up a five-goal thriller, due to the two sides’ poor defensive records.

Merson gave his predictions to Sky Sports, and feels Thursday night’s match up could go a similar direction as Arsenal’s 3-3 draw with Liverpool.

“This will be a good game. You look at Arsenal against Liverpool and it was an entertaining game. But seriously, you are not going to win anything at all playing like that. I am going to go 3-2 to Arsenal though…”

It’s hard to know what you’re going to get in front of goal with Arsenal recently. The Gunners scored three in five minutes against Liverpool, so you’d think they’re firing on all cylinders. But they also only scored three in 360 minutes against Southampton, Newcastle and West Ham.

Prior to that, the team put six past BATE Borisov, so they’re very hit-and-miss right now. If Wenger’s side can replicate anything like that five minutes spell against Liverpool, it’ll be an easy game. If not, I’d expect a tighter affair, more similar to the previous four matches.

However, it’s not all about Arsenal’s form in front of goal. Their form at the back is similarly sporadic at the moment. After consecutive league collapses in the opening 15 minutes against Manchester United and Southampton, Arsenal kept three clean sheets, before conceding three to Jurgen Klopp’s men.

Overall, it’s hard to fault Merson’s prediction, because Arsenal’s form leading into the game suggests anything could happen.