Arsenal takes on Liverpool at the Emirates Stadium this weekend as Mikel Arteta's side looks for a bounce back victory after a demoralizing loss to Bournemouth.
Not only did Arsenal lose its first game of the season, it lost William Saliba for a game because of a red card issued for a professional foul. The French defender will miss the Liverpool tie, shades of Declan Rice being suspended before the north London derby earlier in the season except this time the injuries in Arsenal's camp are piling up.
Bukayo Saka, Riccardo Calafiori, Jurrien Timber, Martin Ødegaard, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Takehiro Tomiyasu are all doubts for the game meaning Arsenal will likely put together a makeshift defense. Arteta will have to make sure his defensive tactics are on point to deal with a top of the league Liverpool side firing on all cylinders.
Here's how Arsenal could line up in the Premier League this weekend.
Arsenal Predicted Lineup vs. Liverpool (4-3-3)
GK: David Raya—Arsenal's leader between the sticks conceded two goals giving up a penalty along the way last time out against Bournemouth. He rebounded with a clean sheet in the Champions League, but will have his work cut out for him against a deadly Liverpool attack.
LB: Jakub Kiwior—After falling down the depth chart following the addition of Calafiori, Kiwior comes in to try and deal with Mohamed Salah.
CB: Gabriel—Likely Arsenal's captain on the day as he tries to keep a clean sheet without his normal partner in the middle of the defense.
CB: Benjamin White—White and Gabriel were defensive partners back in the 2021–22 season, but after Saliba came into the side he became a stalwart at RB. He'll slide inside hoping to put in a solid shift while also being solid with the ball at his feet.
RB: Thomas Partey—Arsenal needs to use its midfield depth to fill in at the back. Partey, as he has in cameos, completes the back four.
CM: Declan Rice—Rice will be tasked with creating down the left but also tracking back to help Kiwior against Salah.
CM: Jorginho—The Italian midfielder comes into the side to anchor the base and provide protection. His biggest weakness is pace, so he'll have to be on top of his positional awareness to minimize getting caught out on the counter.
CM: Mikel Merino—The summer signing gets another start in midfield looking to find some consistency.
LW: Gabriel Martinelli—His action resulted in an Shakhtar Donetsk own goal in UCL action as he tries to build consistent form. He's been pivotal in recent league triumphs over Liverpool at the Emirates Stadium.
ST: Kai Havertz—His scoring streak at home might've come to an end against Shakhtar Donetsk, but he'll need to be clinical this weekend if Arsenal is to come out with a positive result.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Arsenal Predicted Lineup vs. Liverpool: Premier League.
