Arsenal begin their FA Cup journey on Sunday when they travel to Nottingham Forest for their third round tie, so let’s check out the latest team news.
The Gunners will have had more time to prepare after their Carabao Cup semi-final against Liverpool was postponed. It would have also given manager Mikel Arteta a chance to ponder on the players that could be part of the starting XI.
As for the team news, there are four players who will not be available as they have made their way to the AFCON. This includes Thomas Partey, Nicolas Pepe, Mohamed Elneny and former captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
Ainsley Maitland Niles is close to securing a move to Roma and is unlikely to be part of the squad. There is further worry in central midfield as Granit Xhaka has not been pictured in training ahead of the Forest game. This could see Charlie Patino play from the start. Another player that will be missing out on the game is central defender Gabriel who is suspended.
Arsenal Fever View:
The north Londoners have been building some momentum over the past few games and would be confident ahead of the weekend. They have a chance to try out some of the youngsters and continue their quest of getting a trophy.
What will matter is the combination that Arteta decides to go with and the Spanish boss could field a mix of youth and experience. Some of the Academy players can be expected to play a part given the number of absentees.
For the Gunners, it is important that they play on the front foot and look to impose themselves on the game. If they can do that, the visitors do have the firepower to put the game beyond any doubt.
Arsenal would be relying on the likes of Bukayo Saka and Eddie Nketiah to give them the cutting edge. Playing against any team is not easy, at this stage of the competition but the north Londoners would be confident that they can come away with a win. Doing so will give the players a push ahead of next week’s semi-final against Liverpool.
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