Arsenal will take on Wolves in their Premier League opener at the Emirates, and Mikel Arteta will pick his strongest possible lineup.
Arsenal will be aiming to get off to a winning start to the brand new Premier League campaign when they host Wolves at the Emirates. Mikel Arteta has a strong enough group to pick his strongest eleven, as the Gunners also have a fitness boost ahead of the game.
During his pre-match press conference, Arteta was asked many questions, including some on his players and their fitness levels. There were also queries about a couple of their academy stars who featured heavily during pre-season as the Gunners boss also provided an update on Jurrien Timber.
Timber has been nursing a foot injury, which saw him miss at least three pre-season games, including the two at the Emirates. Arteta said he would be back among the group as the Dutchman had joined full training earlier in the week.
Arteta said, “Jurrien will be in the squad tomorrow. Obviously, he had a really tough period, but he used it in a great way, I think because he’s managed to get a lot of things done and improved in many areas except playing. He found it really helpful, I think, and now he’s ready, and he has a chance.”
Meanwhile, Arteta also touched upon the progress made by youngsters Myles Lewis-Skelly and Ethan Nwaneri. The duo, alongside Josh Nichols and Ayden Heaven, prominently featured during pre-season. Arteta hinted at including them in some of the match-day squads while insisting they will train with the first-team group regularly.
Arteta continued, “Yes, for sure, and as well, we have Jurrien Timber, who we lost for 11 months, so that’s another one. Myles has played a lot of minutes, Ethan and Ayden as well in pre-season. That gave them a platform to understand how good they are and the options that we have in the squad right now. They are certainly going to be training with us.”
In terms of injuries, only Kieran Tierney and Takehiro Tomiyasu are out of contention, with Arteta suggesting they are weeks away from returning. Beyond them, there are no other problems, meaning the manager has a strong enough squad to pick from.
The Gunners boss will resist the temptation of including summer signing Riccardo Calafiori at left-back, as the Italian might not be ready to start games just yet. Hence, Oleksandr Zinchenko is pencilled to start against Wolves, although, to his credit, the Ukrainian has been sharp in pre-season.
Ben White, William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes will complete that back four, with David Raya between the sticks. Thomas Partey will start at the base of Arsenal’s midfield, with Martin Odegaard and Declan Rice featuring on either side.
Bukayo Saka will play on the right, with Gabriel Martinelli ahead of Leandro Trossard on the left, while Kai Havertz leads the line. The Gunners bench also looks strong now, with the Belgian, Gabriel Jesus, Calafiori, and Jorginho among those featuring there, alongside Timber and probably Ethan Nwaneri, among others.
Predicted Lineup (4-3-3): Raya; Ben White, Saliba, Gabriel, Zinchenko; Odegaard, Partey, Rice; Saka, Havertz, Martinelli
