Emile Smith Rowe and Nicolas Pepe could be handed starts when Arsenal host Sunderland in the EFL Cup quarter-final on Tuesday.
Arsenal will take on Sunderland at the Emirates in the EFL Cup quarter-final, having been a bit fortunate to have drawn the only lower league team left in the competition. However, Mikel Arteta will field a strong enough side to face the Black Cats, although there could be as many as eleven changes to the starting lineup.
The EFL Cup tie will provide Arteta with the chance to rest his first-team stars, most of whom have started four Premier League games in a row. Moreover, this could be a good chance to warm the legs of players sitting on the bench for some time.
In terms of injuries, Sead Kolasinac is the only confirmed absentee. Takehiro Tomiyasu suffered a knock against Leeds United, although he would have been rested anyway for this cup tie. Albert Sambi Lokonga and Pablo Mari tested positive for COVID-19 before the Leeds game and are unavailable to take on Sunderland.
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In the build-up to the game, Arteta celebrated two years in charge of the club. He told the Arsenal Media about his time at the helm, and the challenges faced. He said, “It’s been an incredible journey, and I am really happy and proud with the company that I have had on the journey. I would say we have been through different phases throughout those two years.”
“A phase where straightaway we had to pick up results and try to turn around the situation we were in. Now it is a new phase where we start to rebuild the team, we take a very clear direction with how we want to move forward with the club, a real connection between the team and supporters, the ownership and board and I think now it is excitement.”
Back to the game, and Arteta is expected to make eleven changes to his side. Bernd Leno will come in place of Aaron Ramsdale, while Cedric Soares, Calum Chambers, Rob Holding and Nuno Tavares will form the back four.
Mohamed Elneny and Ainsley Maitland-Niles will form the central midfield partnership. Arteta could rest his first-choice midfielders Granit Xhaka and Thomas Partey ahead of two back-to-back Premier League clashes in the next seven days.
Emile Smith Rowe is in fine goalscoring form and will be itching to play more games. He will get to reprise the No.10 role, replacing Martin Odegaard in the side. Nicolas Pepe could be deployed on the right side of the Arsenal attack. To round off the attacking unit, Eddie Nketiah could start on the left-hand side in place of Gabriel Martinelli, with Folarin Balogun set to be given a chance to lead the line for Arsenal.
Predicted Arsenal XI: Leno; Cedric, Chambers, Holding, Tavares; Maitland-Niles, Elneny; Pepe, Smith Rowe, Nketiah; Balogun
