Arsenal face off against Liverpool at Anfield on Saturday, hoping to make it back-to-back wins in the Premier League.
The Gunners bounced back from the narrow defeat at Aston Villa with a solid 2-0 win over Brighton and Hove Albion at the Emirates Stadium last weekend. The victory saw them leapfrog Saturday’s opponents to first in the league standings.
Delighted with his team’s dominant performance against Brighton, Mikel Arteta and Co. will be looking to make a statement by beating Liverpool, who are unbeaten at home in all competitions this season and come into the big game off the back of a 5-1 thrashing of West Ham in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals.
Arsenal Team News
Both Jorginho and Mohamed Elneny, who had picked up knocks in recent weeks, are expected to be fit to return to the Arsenal squad against Liverpool. But Jurrien Timber, Takehiro Tomiyasu, Thomas Partey and Fabio Vieira are all currently out of action with longer-term injuries and will play no part at Anfield.
Predicted Arsenal lineup vs Liverpool (4-3-3)
Goalkeeper
David Raya kept a clean sheet in Arsenal’s win over Brighton, but he will need to produce a top-class display to earn a shutout at Anfield.
Defence
William Saliba and Gabriel should continue their formidable partnership at the back for the Gunners. While they successfully kept out a strong Brighton attack, they will need to do a lot more to neutralise a potent Liverpool front line on Saturday.
Ben White and Oleksandr Zinchenko will be deployed as the full-backs here. They will look to contribute to the offensive phase of the game with their passing and movement, but given they will be potentially up against Luis Diaz and Mohamed Salah, White and Zinchenko must focus more on fulfilling their defensive duties.
Midfield
Declan Rice will start as the single pivot for the visitors. Arteta’s side will rely on the England international to control the pace of the game with his strong positional awareness and metronomic passing ability. He will be joined by Kai Havertz and Martin Odegaard in the middle of the park.
Havertz has grown in confidence in recent weeks following his goals against Brentford, Luton Town and Brighton, while Odegaard’s guile, vision and leadership skills make him a quintessential Arteta player.
If Arsenal find themselves in a good position against Liverpool, Arteta may well turn to Jorginho to help his side see out the game.
Attack
Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli will be deployed as the wingers, and they will look to split open the Liverpool defence with their pace, directness and trickery. Gabriel Jesus is set to lead the line for the Gunners, with the Brazilian striker hoping to get on the scoresheet against Liverpool and guide his team to all three points.
If Arsenal are chasing the game or needs fresh impetus in attack, Arteta could bring on Eddie Nketiah and Leandro Trossard off the bench.