Arsenal face Aston Villa on Sunday hoping to extend their winning run to three games in all competitions. The Gunners are coming on the back of a 4-1 win over Molde in the UEFA Europa League in midweek and confidence will be high, especially following a win over Manchester United last weekend while Villa themselves have lost their last two matches.
Predicted Arsenal Lineup Vs Aston Villa
Defence
Mikel Arteta made wholesale changes to his defensive unit in the midweek game against Molde. He is expected to revert those changes, although David Luiz is one player hoping to retain his place in the side. The Brazilian may get the nod ahead of Rob Holding at centre-back.
As for Shkodran Mustafi, he will make way for Gabriel Magalhaes while Hector Bellerin and Kieran Tierney are both expected to replace Cedric Soares and Sead Kolasinac in the wide defensive positions.
Bernd Leno, surprisingly, kept his place in goal against Molde FK, ahead of Runar Alex Runarsson. Arteta, therefore, is unlikely to make any changes in between the sticks either.
Midfield
Thomas Partey and Mohamed Elneny were the architects behind Arsenal’s narrow win over Manchester United last time out. So there could be a complete overhaul in the midfield department as well, with the duo most likely to get the nod ahead of Granit Xhaka and Dani Ceballos, though one of these two players might make a substitute appearance in the second half.
Joe Willock, meanwhile, should make way for Bukayo Saka, who is expected to feature on the left side of the midfield. He will look to combine with Tierney and fuel Arsenal’s left-sided overload.
Attack
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is guaranteed to return to the starting lineup this weekend. The Gabonese international has scored in the last two matches he has played, and it will be interesting to see whether or not he can continue his form against Aston Villa.
Aubameyang is expected to operate on the left flank, with Willian likely to get the nod ahead of Nicolas Pepe on the opposite end. The Arsenal attack, meanwhile, is tipped to be spearheaded by Alexandre Lacazette. The Frenchman will feature in the number nine role, replacing the young Eddie Nketiah, who might feature as a late substitute in order to provide a bit more energy going forward.
