Arsenal will aim to inch closer to a spot in the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals when they lock horns with Bayer Leverkusen at BayArena in the round of 16 first leg on Wednesday evening. Mikel Arteta has new injury concerns to worry about ahead of his side’s latest fixture.
Riccardo Calafiori and Leandro Trossard picked up knocks in the FA Cup fifth-round clash with Mansfield Town this past weekend. Arteta is sweating over the duo’s fitness, with William Saliba also requiring late fitness tests to determine their availability.
However, Ben White (muscular), Martin Odegaard (knock), and Mikel Merino (foot) remain in the treatment room for the away side. Meanwhile, during his pre-match press conference, Arteta provided fitness updates on Calafiori, Saliba, Odegaard, and Trossard. The Spanish tactician also spoke about Kai Havertz’s recent recovery.
The Arsenal manager said, “Those two [Calafiori and Trossard] are a possibility that they are available, and we’ll see tomorrow. He [Odegaard] is out. And yes [Gabriel Magalhaes, Saliba, Declan Rice, and Martin Zubimendi are back].”
“He spent 10 incredible years here. The way he talks about the club, the people here, the culture, what he’s learned and how hard this journey was for him to continue his next chapter in England. I’m glad to see how people are receiving him the moment he’s walking around the building, and I’m not surprised.”
“Now it’s been three weeks that he’s had total consistency in terms of training, preparation and gametime, and we’re going to continue to roll that because we know how Kai can impact this team. It’s been something new for him. When you look at his injury record, it’s just blank. He never had a muscle injury and last year he had his hamstring injury that required surgery and then the knee injury, so it’s been a tough period. But as well a lot of great things happened in his private life as well.”
David Raya will replace Kepa Arrizabalaga between the sticks, with Arsenal lining up in a 4-2-3-1 formation in front of him against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday. The backline will feature Jurrien Timber, William Saliba, Gabriel Magalhaes, and Piero Hincapie.
As for the midfield unit, there is no looking past Declan Rice and Martin Zubimendi in the double pivot, with Eberechi Eze reprising the no. 10 role. Finally, Viktor Gyokeres will lead the line for the away side against Bayer Leverkusen, with Gabriel Martinelli and Bukayo Saka being the two wide attackers.
Predicted Arsenal XI: Raya; Timber, Mosquera, Gabriel, Hincapie; Zubimendi, Rice; Saka, Eze, Martinelli; Gyokeres
