Arsenal entertain Tottenham Hotspur in Sunday’s Premier League derby from the Emirates Stadium.
The Gunners registered a 3-1 win over Olympiacos in the first leg of the Europa League last 16 in midweek, but they were fortuitous as the Greek side failed to capitalise on their defensive errors.
They will return to Premier League action against Spurs tomorrow and have the opportunity to close the gap to fourth-placed Chelsea to 10 points with a victory.
The Gunners are winless in the last five meetings against their arch-rivals in all competitions and have never gone six in a row without a win. They will be keen to put things right.
Here’s our predicted line-up for the north London derby.
Bernd Leno is an automatic choice in goal for the Gunners as he is the undisputed first-choice goalkeeper. In front of him, Hector Bellerin and Kieran Tierney are likely to feature in the full-back positions.
Pablo Mari has been the central defensive partner for David Luiz in back-to-back league games, but Gabriel Magalhaes could replace him after a dominant midweek display where he bagged a goal and an assist.
In the centre of the park, Granit Xhaka is pretty much expected to start. Thomas Partey played less than an hour in Piraeus and following the game, Mikel Arteta said that the decision was only tactical.
The Ghanaian has just returned from a hamstring injury and has been culpable to squandering possession on multiple occasions. He will be keen to redeem himself in the north London derby where he is likely to accompany Xhaka.
The attack could be identical to recent games. Willian has bagged four assists from as many matches and Arteta was full of praise for him after the Olympiacos clash, where he delivered the cross for Gabriel’s headed goal which made it 2-1 in the club’s favour.
The Brazilian should start on the left wing with Bukayo Saka on the opposite flank. Martin Odegaard came with an absolute thunderbolt strike against Olympiacos to score his maiden Gunners goal.
With Emile Smith Rowe having just returned from a hip problem, the Norwegian is likely to feature in the number 10 role again. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang seems likely to lead the line ahead of Alexandre Lacazette for the third game running.
Aubameyang has had a good record against Spurs over the years. The Gabon international has netted seven goals in 11 meetings against the north London side. He has three goals in six games against them for the Gunners.
Predicted Arsenal XI: Bernd Leno, Hector Bellerin, David Luiz, Gabriel Magalhaes, Kieran Tierney, Thomas Partey, Granit Xhaka, Bukayo Saka, Martin Odegaard, Willian, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
