Arsenal will be facing Leicester City in the Premier League this Saturday. They are currently at the 3rd place of the table with 11 points, trailing behind City & Liverpool. When the Gunners faced Pep’s invincible City last weekend they had almost grabbed all the three points at the Etihad as they had the lead till the 97th minute. But the 10 men Arsenal conceded a late equalizer by John Stones at the 98th minute.
So, Arteta and his soldiers will be hungry for a win against the Foxes to get their momentum back. But Arteta faces more fitness concerns ahead of the game against Leicester. As per the reports of Evening Standard, the presence of David Raya, Ben White and Jurrien Timber is uncertain.
Arsenal injury list increases
Since the start of the new season, Arsenal have been facing a nightmare regarding their player’s fitness. After Mikel Merino and captain Odegard, the Gunners face another stint of fitness issues. Arteta provided a report in the post-match press conference after the win against Bolton. He mentioned David Raya missed the match on Wednesday night due to a ‘muscular injury’. The goalie was seen limping after the clash against City last Sunday.
When reporters asked if Raya will be available for Saturday, Arteta said,
“We don’t know yet. He’s got a muscular injury.”
Arteta even confirmed the possible omission of fullbacks Ben White and Jurrien Timber ahead of the Saturday night clash. White, who was suffering from some minor issues was benched against City. But he was forced to come off the bench at the second half to do his defensive duties. Arteta stated regarding the decision that,
“It was a little bit forced, but we are ok. We’ve done it with different players but we have full belief in the players we have. It gives us something different.”
Timber was also seen uncomfortable, as he was substituted at the 90th minute against City. It seemed he had some hamstring problems while he went out of the pitch.
Possible starting Xi against Leicester
In the absence of Raya, it is most likely to see the debut of 2nd choice goalkeeper Neto against the Foxes. We can also expect to see Gabriel Jesus starting for the first time in the league this season in the absence of suspended Leandro Trossard. Kai Havertz will most probably play as a number 8 behind Gabriel.
Neto (GK); Jakub Kiwior (RB), William Saliba (CB), Gabriel Magalhães (CB), Riccardo Calafiori (LB); Thomas Partey (CM), Declan Rice (CM), Kai Havertz (CAM); Bukayo Saka (RW), Gabriel Martinelli (LW), Gabriel Jesus (ST)
Arsenal youth stars shine in the Carabao cup
Arteta rested most of his key players in the EFL cup third round game against Bolton, on Wednesday night. Academy players Lewis-Skelly, Ethan Nwaneri, Jack Porter and Joshua Nichols got their debut start for the Gunners.
Neto, who is playing on loan from AFC Bournemouth, couldn’t play against Bolton because he was cup tied. So Arteta handed down the chance to 16 year old youth team goalkeeper Jack Porter. The spaniard was full of praise for the England national youth team player. He said,
“Jack has been training with us since pre-season and we were confident that he could do the role. I think he reacted really well, he was really composed yesterday in training and today as well. His teammates really helped him as well on that. What an experience.”
Along with Porter’s performance, Ethan Nwaneri scored a brace in his debut start for the Gunners as he won the POTM award. Nwaneri has been one of the best talents of the Arsenal academy.
Fans always wants to see him play at the pitch. Hope we will see more of Nwaneri at the Emirates in the near future.
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