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Saturday, January 4, 2025

Arsenal predicted line-up against Brentford


Arsenal enter 2025 in second place in the Premier League and 11 games unbeaten, but the mood in north London isn’t exactly painting the rosiest picture.

A lot of that has to do with it Bukayo Saka’s recent injury setback which will keep him on the sidelines for at least a couple of months. Life without their superstar winger began with a 1-0 win against Ipswich Town on Friday night, a performance that encapsulated the latest iteration of Mikel Arteta’s side: sturdy and in control, but without edge merciless

This will be a problem for the title contenders, but they are a good enough team even without Saka to stay in contention. Surely Liverpool is due to a mistake, right?

However, their margin for error is very small and just three points will do when they travel to Brentford on New Year’s Day. Here’s how the Gunners could line up at Gtech.

Kai Havertz, Leandro Trossard, Myles Lewis-Skelly

Arsenal are currently 11 games unbeaten / Marc Atkins/GettyImages

GK: David Raya – Raya was unable to face the Bees last season after joining the Gunners on an initial loan, but the Spaniard is available to take over at his former club after completing a permanent move in the summer.

RB: Jurrien Timber – There has been a lot of Timber over the last month as a result of Arsenal’s injuries at full-back. He is a good footballer, but there is a risk of exhaustion.

CB: William Saliba – Saliba plays an important role in avoiding fast bees on Wednesday. Ipswich allowed the Frenchman to complete passes at will on Friday, and there is scope for the defender to rack up another monster haul on New Year’s Day.

CB: Gabriel – Set-pieces have been central to Arsenal’s success this season and they will need Gabriel to continue his dominance in the opposition box while Saka is out. He missed a golden opportunity on Friday night.

LB: Myles Lewis-Skelly – Surely Riccardo Calafiori will be involved, but Lewis-Skelly does not deserve to be left out. He has been seen at full ease since joining the senior line-up.

CM: Declan Rice – Arteta recently spoke about Rice’s midfield role being dependent on the opposition. with arsenal likely to dominate territorially and Brentford with a clear threat on the counter, it makes sense for Rice to start again at the base of the midfield over Thomas Partey.

CM: Mikel Merino – The Gunners need bodies in the box on Wednesday and Merino’s crash could come in handy. The midfielder’s career is yet to ignite in north London.

CM: Martin Odegaard – The pattern is starting to become more successful as a metronome, and we should expect to see it drop deeper and wider in an attempt to dictate proceedings. However, Arsenal will also require his ability as a lock-picker in the final third.

RW: Gabriel Martinelli – Arteta will not abandon the experiment of the right Martinelli after a start. The Brazilian should try again and fight on Friday night.

ST: Kai Havertz – The German produced his best performance in a while against Ipswich, but could return to a centre-forward role here. Havertz scored a pair of late winners against Brentford last season.

LW: Gabriel Jesus – Jesus will remain in the team and operate in a fluid role on the left. It will rotate freely and will have many opportunities to occupy the frame. His mini-scoring career ended last time.

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