Arsenal play hosts to Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, hoping for retribution following their defeat in the reverse fixture of this north London derby. A win could be crucial from a sporting perspective as well, with Mikel Arteta hoping to create a substantial gap between themselves and Leeds United. A loss, however, could put them in a spot of bother once again, with Leeds and Wolves breathing down the necks.
Predicted Arsenal Lineup Vs Tottenham Hotspur
Defence
Arteta doesn’t have to deal with too many injury-related absentees heading into this game, so it will be interesting to see how he goes about his fitness in terms of squad selection. David Luiz and Gabriel Magalhaes were given the nod in central defence in midweek, but one of them could make way for Pablo Mari, with Gabriel likely to be the victim.
Elsewhere, Hector Bellerin could continue at right-back ahead of Cedric Soares while Arteta shouldn’t face any real dilemma on the opposite flank, with Kieran Tierney being a no-brainer.
Bernd Leno also remains a guaranteed pick in goal, as the German desperately hopes for a clean sheet, having failed to win one since the goalless draw with Manchester United at the end of January.
Midfield
Although Arteta did take the risky option of starting with Thomas Partey in the midweek fixture, it appears the midfielder might just be fit enough to retain his place on the side against Tottenham. We can thus witness the Ghanaian international renew his central midfield partnership with Granit Xhaka as they look to dominate the game from the base of Arsenal’s 4-2-3-1.
Martin Odegaard is another favourite to get the nod in the number ten role, having made quite an impression at Emirates since joining from Real Madrid in January.
Attack
Odegaard’s ability to provide the creative essence in the final third is going to play a key role in Arsenal’s chance creation. However, the responsibility of offering that x-factor going forward will be on the shoulders of Bukayo Saka. These two young attackers have indeed set the world alight in recent matches, while the veteran Willian may just pip Emile Smith Rowe to start on the other flank.
The ageing Brazilian may not offer the same penetration as Saka, but his experience, combined with his crossing game could be useful against a Tottenham side that generally likes to play with a low block. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, therefore, will be primarily relying on crosses.
