The first international break of the season is upon us, and for Arsenal fans, the nervous wait to play against Tottenham has now begun with the pair set to meet on October 1st.
The Gunners head into the September break top of the Premier League after their impressive 3-0 win against Brentford, with Tottenham shortly behind Arsenal in third after their unbeaten league start, with their most recent performance producing a 6-2 win against Leicester City.
With Arsenal having home advantage, Mikel Arteta’s side will be desperate to get the three points against their north London rivals when the two eventually meet at the Emirates to play what could already be the biggest game of the season in the Premier League, with the two clubs flying in the standings.
Indeed, a win for Arsenal could be quite extraordinary for Arteta and his side, and here’s how the red half of north London could line up when Tottenham come to their turf to play in this massive Premier League derby, where we can expect fireworks and drama of the highest-quality.
Zinchenko returns to the defence with Arteta reverting to trusted back-five
Arsenal’s most recent Premier League win saw Kieran Tierney start with Oleksandr Zinchenko out through injury, however, the £35m summer signing from Manchester City is set to return to face Tottenham, and the Ukrainian international could get the start over this Scottish counterpart.
Whilst Tierney was impressive against Brentford, Zinchenko’s style of play and the role the 25-year-old has could be better-suited for a game Arsenal simply have to win, with the versatile superstar able to get the best out of others in the Gunners’ XI.
Making up the rest of the defence is the tried-and-tested quartet of William Saliba, Gabriel Maghelese, Ben White and Aaron Ramsdale, who will all want revenge after what Tottenham did last season in their 3-0 win against the Gunners at their stadium.
Captain Odegaard replaces Vieira with Partey and Xhaka in the midfield
As well as Zinchenko, Martin Odegaard was also missing from Arsenal’s 3-0 win against Brentford, though just like the fullback, the north London captain is expected to be back to face Tottenham in what could be a massive boost for the Gunners, especially with Thomas Partey also fully fit.
Just like with Tierney, Odegaard’s replacement, Fabio Vieira, was excellent against the Bees as the Portuguese talent scored a wonderful goal to wrap up the three points for Arsenal, yet in a fixture as big as this, Arteta could select the 23-year-old for the XI given the Norwegian’s incredible form this season.
Joining Odegaard and Partey in the midfield is of course Granit Xhaka, who enjoyed arguably his best performance of the campaign so far last weekend against Brentford as the Swiss international assisted Gabriel Jesus’ header and controlled the tempo of the game with excellence, with Arsenal fans hopeful that the 29-year-old can repeat this display against the old enemy.
Jesus leads as Martinelli and Saka hope to cause Tottenham problems
Jesus has fitted in at Arsenal with ease since his move to the English capital from Manchester City this summer, and whilst fans would like to see record-breaker Ethan Nwaneri feature once again for the Gunners, the occasion will be simply too big for the Hale End wonderkid.
As a result, the front three is what we have seen from Arsenal all season in Jesus, Gabriel Martinelli and Bukayo Saka, with the trio all in red-hot form heading into the north London derby against Tottenham in just under two-weeks time.
Saka bagged two assists in Arsenal’s win against Brentford, and whilst Martinelli has not scored for the Gunners’ since late-August, the Brazilian has proven to be a consistent threat from out on the left, something the youngster could exploit if Tottenham decide to start Emerson Royal out on the right.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
