Arsenal travel to face arch-rivals Tottenham Hotspur in the latest instalment of the north London derby. The Gunners want to stay within distance of Manchester City in the Premier League and need all three points.
However, Arsenal won’t have it their way as Spurs are desperate to bounce back from their 2-1 loss to Newcastle United suffered before the international break.
Arsenal have several injury concerns ahead of the game, which could scupper manager Mikel Arteta’s plans. Declan Rice will miss the clash after picking up a needless red card against Brighton & Hove Albion.
The Gunners are also without captain Martin Odegaard, who picked up an injury during the international break that could rule him out for weeks.
Riccardo Calafiori also suffered a freak injury during the France versus Italy game and is doubtful for this game. Ousmane Dembele fell and inexplicably rolled his studs into Calafiori’s ankles, leaving Arsenal short-manned.
Adding to that, new summer signing Mikel Merino is out for the foreseeable future. Arsenal will have to turn to their fringe options to step up to the plate and deliver a much-needed three points and morale-boosting victory against Tottenham.
Ethan Nwaneri could step into the picture to replace Odegaard, with Fabio Vieira returning to FC Porto on loan for the season. The highly-touted 17-year-old starlet could be thrown into the deep ends, but he has the talents to swim and stay afloat.
He will be aided by the presence of Ghanaian midfielder Thomas Partey, who came through the break unscathed after two matches for the Black Stars.
Former Chelsea midfielder Jorginho will likely be in the starting XI against Spurs. The Italian is expected to replace Rice in the line-up.
Jorginho could be key for the Gunners. He can control and slow the tempo against Spurs, something they might not be able to cope with.
Tottenham coach Ange Postecoglou loves his side playing ultra-attacking/gung-ho football, but if Jorginho takes charge, he could dominate the centre and run rings around the Lilywhites.
Possible Arsenal Starting Line-up
(4-3-3): David Raya; Ben White, William Saliba, Jurrien Timber; Ethan Nwaneri, Thomas Partey, Jorginho; Leandro Trossard, Kai Havertz, Bukayo Saka.
