SETTABLOID

You could forgive him for not doing so at the minute. He faces the very real prospect of going up against the best team in the Premier League right now with arguably his three best players missing. The Spaniard won’t allow himself to get down about it though.

“It gives me zero for the next moment, the next day, the next preparation,” he said in his pre-match press conference. “It just takes things out of me. If it takes things out of me, it takes things out of the staff because they are close to me. If it takes things out of the staff, it’s then the players. Then your belief? Throw it away.”

Despite a defeat against Bournemouth last weekend, Arsenal are determined to bounce back on Sunday evening as they set to host league leaders Liverpool in an electrifying encounter. While they remain firm favourites to challenge the mighty Manchester City for the coveted Premier League crown, Mikel Arteta has urged the home fans to create a hostile ambience to make it more difficult for Arne Slot’s army.

A midweek win against Shakhtar Donetsk in the Champions League must have boosted their confidence amid several key absentees.  Liverpool, on the other hand, are off to a flying start with 11 wins in 12 games across competitions, and their measured and controlled approach under the Dutch boss could produce an intense tactical battle at the Emirates.

Predicted 4-4-2 Arsenal Lineup To Face Liverpool

Defence

David Raya had a night to forget at the Vitality Stadium. But he remains irreplaceable for his outing, reflexes between the sticks and ball-playing ability from the last line of defence.

Meanwhile, the Gunners will be without William Saliba who received a marching order against the Cherries. A knee injury sustained against Shakhtar would keep Riccardo Calafiori on the sidelines for a few weeks. Also, Jurrien Timber, Takehiro Tomiyasu and Kieran Trippier’s potential absence might force Arteta to look for sporadic options in the defensive third. Despite his frailty at the back, Oleksandr Zinchenko could get the nod over teenage ace Myles Lewis-Skelly down the left-hand side. Jakub Kiwior is expected to slot in deep defence and partner with Gabriel Magalhães, but the gaffer would be relieved to have Ben White as the right fullback.

Midfield

Arsenal are still without skipper Martin Ødegaard, but the likes of Declan Rice, Thomas Partey, Jorginho and Mikel Merino offer them depth and quality in the middle of the park. Rice is an assured starter for his power, stamina and ball-carrying traits, and the Englishman could be paired up with Partey for his physical presence. Bukayo Saka is still nursing a hamstring strain picked up in the England camp and the Spanish chief could opt for Raheem Sterling on the right against his former employers. Gabriel Martinelli has troubled Trent Alexander-Arnold in previous meetings and his flair and finesse from the left could lead to goal-scoring opportunities.

Attack

Kai Havertz has netted six times so far this season while spearheading the attack and the German hitman must retain his starting status alongside Leandro Trossard. Gabriel Jesus could be involved as a substitute to inject more firepower high up the pitch.

One of the biggest absences for the Gunners has been Martin Odegaard, who suffered an ankle injury while on Norway duty just over a month ago.

The Arsenal captain has been out with ligament damage, but is edging ever closer to a return to action.

Indeed, Norway manager Stale Solbakken recently hinted that Odegaard could be in contention for their Nations League games in November.

He told Norwegian outlet Verdens Gang: “Everything indicates that things are going according to plan.

The report cites sources claiming Odegaard will be fit before mid-November, but the Gunners’ preference is for him to miss the Slovenia and Kazakhstan games.

This is so Arsenal can manage his workload and protect him ahead of the busy festive period.

Arsenal have already been without Odegaard for a while now, due to the injury he picked up on Norway duty.

He cannot go out again on international duty just as he returns from injury, risking another setback which will cost the Gunners dear.

That said, it remains to be seen whether Odegaard will even be fit enough by that stage, and if that’s the case, the matter would be settled pretty quickly.

Whatever happens, Odegaard is better off staying put at Arsenal, with the coaches and medical staff ensuring he can get back to his best.

Arsenal results suggest that Mikel Arteta has done a pretty good job of dealing with injuries and suspensions so far this season. Performances say something a bit different.

The big caveat here is that three of eight Premier League games have been played with at least half an hour spent down to 10 men. Analysing patterns and levels from these matches becomes effectively impossible or worthless from the moment the game state changes.

Unless Arsenal plan on doing this as regularly as they currently are, then it is hard to really know where this group are at and how things will move forward. Maybe the 2-0 win over Paris Saint-Germain is a good barometer, but then again, even the victory over Aston Villa away from home – a match played with Martin Odegaard – could easily have gone the other way.

There is simply a lot of noise from the opening two months of the season. Red cards, injuries, a tough fixture list, and yet they remain in the mix. To what extent Arsenal are as inevitable or impressive as the past two seasons is very much still in the air, though.

Arteta is not seeing his side blow teams away and they have been more reliant on magic from David Raya than they would like. The foundation of an elite team is the defence, but this has been something else entirely.

The games against Southampton and Leicester City raised some serious worries, for example. Is that the real Arsenal? Or is it the one from the first fortnight before Declan Rice’s dismissal against Brighton? In some ways, they haven’t been the same since.

Mikel Arteta has provided an update on the fitness of Bukayo Saka, Jurrien Timber and Riccardo Calafiori ahead of Arsenal’s Premier League clash with Liverpool.

Saka and Timber had been huge doubts after missing out on Tuesday’s Champions League win over Shakhtar Donetsk. Calafiori meanwhile, suffered a knee injury during the clash with the Ukrainian champions that Arteta admitted was worrying.

None of the trio were involved as Arsenal trained at the Sobha Realty Centre on Friday but speaking ahead of Sunday’s top of the table clash, Arteta insisted that all three are in contention to face Liverpool on Sunday.

Calafiori seems the least likely to be able to make Liverpool after sustaining what looked to be a nasty knee problem. Arteta though has insisted that past experiences allow him to maintain confidence.

Mikel Arteta faces a key few days as Bukayo Saka works his way towards fitness. The 23-year-old hasn’t played for over two weeks – for club or country – after picking up a knock while away with England.

In the meantime, he has missed three games. Firstly, having come off at 1-0 down to Greece for Lee Carsley’s Three Lions during October’s international break, he was then absent for the 3-1 win over Finland days later.

Saka returned to the Sobha Realty Training Complex with a hamstring issue to be assessed. Despite a full week of preparations, rest and recovery, he did not feature against AFC Bournemouth that weekend.

To Arteta’s despair, Saka was also unavailable when Shakhtar Donetsk visited north London on Tuesday night. The days are now counting down to Arsenal’s crucial Premier League game against title rivals Liverpool at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday afternoon (4.30pm).

Speaking on Friday, Mikel Arteta was coy on just how likely Saka and his injured teammates are to feature against Liverpool. Both Jurrien Timber and Riccardo Calafiori are also doubts.

Arsenal take on Liverpool in a massive clash in the Premier League this weekend with the hope of regaining control of their title fortunes. However, a defeat would see Arne Slot’s side open a seven-point gap to their rivals.

The pressure is certainly on for Arsenal with a depleted side as Mikel Arteta contends with several question marks in his squad. Martin Odegaard remains a long-term absentee and even in an ideal scenario, the likelihood is that the Norwegian will not make it back in time.

David Raya continues in goal and, despite a rough game at Bournemouth, made some very good stops in midweek against Shakhtar Donetsk. The Spaniard will, however, have a changed back four to contend with.

William Saliba’s suspension has created a problem while Riccardo Calafiori suffering a knee issue on Tuesday only worsened the situation, with the full-back reportedly set to miss a few weeks of action. The return of Jurrien Timber would definitely ease this problem, but the question then becomes where in the back four he plays.

I’ve gone with left-back and then Thomas Partey taking up the right-hand side. Ben White moves into the middle of the defence in place of the Frenchman to partner Gabriel Magalhaes.

Arsenal will be determined to return to winning ways when they face Liverpool. Mikel Arteta will lock horns with Arne Slot at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday afternoon, knowing a win could prove decisive in the Premier League title race.

Last weekend, the Gunners suffered defeat to Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium while the Reds clambered to victory against Chelsea at Anfield. Arsenal and Liverpool both enjoyed wins in the Champions League during the week.

The north Londoners’ extra day of rest could be game-changing, with Bukayo Saka in a race against time to return from injury.

Speaking to Norwegian news outlet Verdens Gang, Stale Solbakken has provided a positive injury update on Martin Odegaard. The 25-year-old midfielder suffered an ankle injury while on international duty in September.

The Norway boss said: “Everything indicates that things are going according to plan. Then it is about the last steps when you are going to train with opponents and at team training. It depends on how he responds to it, but we have a justified hope that he is ready [to play next month].

Arsenal defender Riccardo Calafiori is expected to be sidelined for several weeks after sustaining a knee injury during the club’s 1-0 Champions League victory over Shakhtar Donetsk. The Italian left-back, who was forced off early in the match, appeared to injure his knee and was treated on the field by medical staff before being substituted.

Mikel Arteta, Arsenal’s manager, expressed concern over the incident, calling it “worrying” during his post-match interview. Despite initial fears, reports from Corriere dello Sport in Italy suggest that Calafiori’s injury is not as severe as first thought, though it will likely keep him out of action for Arsenal’s crucial Premier League clash against Liverpool this Sunday.

Calafiori’s absence adds to Arsenal’s growing injury concerns. Captain Martin Odegaard remains out as he continues to recover from an ankle injury sustained during international duty in September.

Jurrien Timber and Bukayo Saka also missed the midweek win over Shakhtar, raising questions about their availability for the Liverpool match. Arteta offered little reassurance on Saka’s condition earlier this week, telling Amazon Prime Video Sport, “I don’t know, sorry. He hasn’t been able to train yet, so it’s unlikely.”

David Seaman has raised Arsenal hopes that Bukayo Saka might be fit to face Liverpool on Saturday, having recently seen him at the club’s training ground.

The winger has sat out the last two matches after picking up a muscle injury in England’s defeat to Greece earlier this month. Mikel Arteta said that Saka – who has seven assists and three goals in 10 matches this term – faces a race against time to be ready for the weekend.

Arsenal have four days to assess Saka ahead of the visit of Liverpool, who top the Premier League and are currently on an eight-game winning run. They have also won each of their six away matches this campaign.

Arsenal, who lost 2-0 to Bournemouth last Saturday, will be without the injured Martin Odegaard and the suspended William Saliba for the contest. Meanwhile, Riccardo Calafiori remains a doubt having been taken off a knee problem against Shakhtar.

Like Saka, Jurrien Timber missed the trip to Bournemouth and has yet to play since being substituted at half-time in the European win over Paris Saint-Germain on October 1. Supporters will hope that Saka is not absent from the matchday squad again this weekend and Seaman has offered a belated update.