Arsenal will entertain Rapid Wien at the Emirates Stadium on Thursday night having already sealed qualification into the knockout phases of the UEFA Europa League. The Gunners suffered a 2-1 loss against Wolverhampton Wanderers in their last outing which has dampened their spirits heading into this European clash. Hence, Mikel Arteta will be desperate to get a positive response from his players so that they can return to winning ways in midweek.
The North London giants will set themselves up in a 4-2-3-1 formation with Arteta expected to make a few tweaks to his side for this home encounter versus Dietmar Kühbauer’s men. Rúnar Alex Rúnarsson and Eddie Nketiah could both be in line to start in this game as the Gunners manager looks to hand them more playing minutes in European football.
4-2-3-1 Arsenal Predicted Lineup To Face Rapid Wien
Defence
Rúnarsson will operate in between the sticks for Arsenal after producing an impressive display versus Molde last week. Gabriel will get the nod to partner Shkodran Mustafi at the centre of Arteta’s defence as they try to keep things solid at the back on Thursday.
Cedric Soares is expected to get a chance to shine at right-back while Ainsley Maitland-Niles will feature on the other flank as the left-back. Both of them will be instructed to get forward and join in on the attack whenever they can in order to provide adequate ammunition for their teammates up top.
Midfield
Joe Willock could be asked to anchor the midfield along with Granit Xhaka and stop the opposition from getting too much joy at the centre of the park. They will also be responsible for retaining possession well and orchestrating some decent openings for the front players.
The promising trio of Reiss Nelson, Emile Smith Rowe and Nicolas Pepe will play just ahead of them as part of Arteta’s attack. Pepe is currently unavailable for selection in domestic football due to suspension, so this midweek game could be an ideal opportunity for him to give a good account of himself from the right flank.
Attack
Eddie Nketiah will lead the line for the Gunners up front as Arteta looks to hand Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang a rest. Alexandre Lacazette will available for selection on the bench and could come on to make an impact in the second half if Arsenal are in need of more firepower in the final third.
