Arsenal beat Olympiacos in the Europa League on Thursday in a somewhat easy game but this weekend they face a much bigger challenge in the form of Spurs.
The North London Derby is easily one of the most anticipated matches in the Premier League and this one will be especially interesting to see as Arsenal will desperately try and stop their local rivals from moving into the top-four.
The Gunners are currently tenth on the league table and finishing in the top-four is now a distant dream for Mikel Arteta. But that won’t stop the manager from naming his best possible line-up on Sunday just to stop Mourinho’ side from gaining any real momentum for the final phase of the season.
The last North London Derby at the Emirates ended 2-2 and while Spurs have looked really sharp over the past couple of weeks but Arsenal have been really solid at home this season and Arteta will be banking on this very form on Sunday.
Arsenal team news vs Spurs:
Gabriel partnered David Luiz in central defence against Olympiacos but Pablo Mari is expected to come back into the side for the North London Derby.
Calum Chambers played superbly at right-back against Burnley but we don’t think the manager will consider using him against Spurs. Either Bellerin or Cedric will get to start in that role.
Thomas Partey and Granit Xhaka are forming a really solid partnership in the middle of the pitch and the pair will once again take the field this weekend.
Bukayo Saka will keep his place in the side from the Olympiacos game but Willian will vacate the left wing as the manager is expected to choose Nicolas Pepe over him. Pepe came off the bench on Thursday but he will get a start against Spurs.
Emile Smith Rowe is back from injury meaning the Gunners have no injury concerns going into the derby. But it will be interesting to see if the Arsenal boss calls Smith Rowe into the starting line-up or not.
Odegaard played really well against Olympiacos and even managed to put his name on the scoresheet. There’s a big chance that the manager could select the loanee once again.
Lacazette seems to have fallen down the pecking order right now and the Frenchman will remain on the bench on Sunday as Aubameyang plays up front.
Arsenal’s predicted XI vs Spurs:
Predicted XI: Leno; Pablo Mari, David Luiz, Tierney, Bellerin; Xhaka, Thomas Partey, Odegaard/Smith Rowe; Nicolas Pepe, Aubameyang, Bukayo Saka.
Stats via Whoscored.com.
