Arsenal will host a flying Nottingham Forest team at the Emirates as they look to recover from a challenging run.
As Arsenal prepares to host the high-flying Nottingham Forest at the Emirates on Saturday afternoon, it seems like a long time ago that they won a Premier League game—or, more accurately, any game in any competition.
The Gunners have lost all four of their recent league games; their most recent triumph came against Southampton at home. They are now nine points behind in the race for the title as a result of the points they lost to Bournemouth, Liverpool, Newcastle United, and Chelsea.
The difference in points with leaders Although there is still time in the season for Liverpool to bounce back and continue the title race, the team is a cause for concern. From a fan’s point of view, it is currently a challenging proposition, but from Arteta’s point of view, still feasible.
It seems like an eternity since Arsenal’s last home game, as many supporters would agree, and they now host Nottingham Forest at the Emirates. In order to inspire his players and the belief that the team can still contend for a championship this season, Arteta will not view this game as a must-win in the context of the title race.
When Nuno Espirito Santo leads Nottingham Forest to the Emirates this season, he will want to claim another significant victory. It wouldn’t be overly optimistic to assume that the Midlands team, who have already triumphed away at Liverpool this season, can do so in North London.
But they are up against a somewhat injured Arsenal team, so the Forest players will need to play well. They are following up a disappointing home loss to Newcastle United, which put an end to their three-game winning streak in the Premier League.
Defender Murillo’s goal in the first half gave the impression that Forest would once again frustrate the opposition with their defensive prowess. Newcastle, on the other hand, had different ideas. The Magpies dominated the second half, and goals from Harvey Barnes, oelinton,J and Alexander Isak guaranteed the three points. Forest and Arsenal are tied for first place going into the Emirates; a victory would put them ahead of their hosts.
Arsenal Team News & Tactics
Because so many players stayed back during the international break, there is a lot of conjecture regarding the fitness of many important Arsenal players before the match against Nottingham Forest. Two important players who left the England lineup due to injuries they received during the Chelsea match were Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice.
A broader expectation exists that the pair will be fit. Thomas Partey and Martin Odegaard will also start in the midfield at the same time because they both remained at Arsenal during the international break. Although there is currently no solid information regarding Leandro Trossard’s fitness, he did sustain an injury while playing for Belgium.
Ben White had a minor knee operation during the international break, which is expected to keep him out of commission for about two months. It is a major setback for Arteta, but he will hope for some returnees because Kieran Tierney and players like Takehiro Tomiyasu and Riccardo Calafiori are getting closer to full fitness. The three are not anticipated to play Forest, though.
Ahead of Saturday, Arteta must decide whether to use Oleksandr Zinchenko or Jakub Kiwior at left-back or Partey in that right-back position, which could see Timber play on the left. The availability of rice will also affect Partey’s use in defense. Gabriel Martinelli and Kai Havertz will round out Arsenal’s offensive lineup against Nottingham Forest.
Raya; Partey, Saliba, Gabriel, Timber; Odegaard, Rice, Merino; Saka, Havertz, Martinelli are the likely lineup (4-3-3).
Forest of Nottingham
Unlike Arsenal, Nottingham Forest has few issues going into this match because the only players missing are Ibrahim Sangare and Danilo, who have been out of the game for a long time. Before this trip, there is some uncertainty surrounding Elliot Anderson. If the former Newcastle United player is unable to make the team sheet, Nicolas Dominguez is most likely to take his place and play in midfield alongside Ryan Yates.
After his lengthy trip to the Far East, Nuno Espirito Santo will evaluate some of his players, including his star striker Chris Wood. Taiwo Awoniyi will be eager to take his place and continue his strong record against Arsenal, even though the New Zealand international is not anticipated to miss.
Wood will undoubtedly lead Forest’s line, while Morgan Gibbs-While is anticipated to play in that No. 10 position with Anthony Elanga and Callum Hudson-Odoi, two important wide players, on either side of him. Apart from that, Espirito Santo is anticipated to stick with his starting lineup, particularly with the backline, which is currently ranked second in the league behind Liverpool’s leaders.
