Arsenal lock horns with Newcastle United at St James’ Park in what will be the biggest Premier League game of the weekend.
The Gunners bowed out of the Carabao Cup fourth round in midweek after losing 3-1 away to West Ham. The defeat to West Ham brought an end to their four-game unbeaten run across all competitions.
With the cup problems out of the way, Mikel Arteta will refocus on Premier League duties, where the North London side are still unbeaten after 10 games on the board.
Arsenal Team News
Arsenal were dealt a fresh injury blow before the midweek Carabao Cup clash when Emile Smith Rowe suffered a knee injury. He will be out for several weeks, joining Gabriel Jesus and Thomas Partey on the sidelines, but Martin Odegaard could return to the starting XI after playing a few minutes against West Ham in the Carabao Cup.
Predicted Arsenal lineup vs Newcastle United (4-3-3)
Goalkeeper
David Raya should assume his goalkeeping duties from Aaron Ramsdale, who started in Arsenal’s 3-1 loss to West Ham in the Carabao Cup. The Spaniard will look to keep back-to-back clean sheets in the Premier League when Arsenal face Newcastle on Saturday.
Defence
There will be changes at the back, with William Saliba certain to walk into the starting XI after being an unused substitute in the cup game. He will replace Jakub Kiwior and partner Gabriel Magalhaes in central defence. Ben White and Oleksandr Zinchenko must continue functioning as full-backs, offering defensive solidity as well as attacking punch.
Midfield
Out of Arsenal’s midfield three of Jorginho, Kai Havertz and Fabio Vieira that started against West Ham, only Jorginho is expected to keep his place in the team on Saturday. The Italy international will be joined by Declan Rice and Martin Odegaard, who came off the bench to score a late consolation at West Ham. Arteta would expect Odegaard to attain full fitness for the trip to Newcastle.
The trio of Rice, Jorginho and Odegaard must function well to win their battles against a physical and athletic Newcastle midfield. Havertz, Vieira and Elneny will be hoping to make an impact if called upon in the second half.
Attack
With Gabriel Jesus injured, Eddie Nketiah becomes the obvious choice to lead the Arsenal attack. Having scored a fine hat-trick last weekend against Sheffield United, he will be keen to produce something similar at Newcastle.
Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli both came off the bench in the midweek cup clash against West Ham but are expected to start at St James’ Park on the right and left-wing, respectively. Arsenal will rely on Saka and Martinelli to play a significant role in the final third and complement Nketiah.
I am Rohan Sengupta from one of the busiest cities in India, Mumbai. A Journalism graduate with a keen interest in sports, football is something I simply cannot live without and writing, discussing and analyzing the game is what I do 24*7.
