After a crucial win on Wednesday, Arsenal overtook West Ham to move up to fourth. However, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur have one and two fewer games, and they are more likely than the Gunners. Beating the European table rivals and temporarily finishing fourth is a huge boost for the team.
Arsenal will face Leeds United next and they hope to avoid another cycle of away losing streaks. Let's take a look at Arsenal's predicted starting line-up.
goalkeeper
Rumsdale will continue to start and work towards the Golden Glove Award. He has secured eight clean sheets, second only to Allison and Edson in nine, who have played more often than Ramsdale.
Leno was still unable to return to the squad after injury, and Okonkovo remained on the bench.
The German goalkeeper is unlikely to play in the League Cup, and whether Arteta will send Oconkovo is a big concern.
Defense
After tilney and Tavarez taking turns, Arsenal's defence looked to stabilize again.
Tierney has won back the main position with his recent performances and he should start on Saturday.
Gabriel, White and Fuan Jianyang are still the main players in the iron, and none of them will fall out of the starting lineup after the excellent performance against West Ham.
midfielder
Xhaka and Thomas have formed a tacit cooperation at present, and the only concern is that the latter may leave the team to participate in the African Cup of Nations, which has recently been reported to be postponed or cancelled.
The two of them should be Edgard in front of them. Smith Rowe had a good performance in the last game and scored goals, but he could be placed on the left due to Martinelli's injury.
striker
Whether Aubameyang can play or not, Lacazette's performance is enough to get the starting position.
Although he was saved on a penalty in the last game, he contributed an assist and his overall performance was outstanding.
As mentioned above, Smith Rowe may be on the left and Saka will be on the right.
Arsenal predict the starting line-up