The season starts here...sort of
We may already be three games in, but this is the first time this season that Mikel Arteta has all of who we would assume to be his first choice players back from injury or illness, so there can be no excuses. Without wanting to minimise the three defeats we have already suffered, the season really does start here for Arsenal.
Norwich are a side that we have a a very strong record against in the Premier League, with 9 wins and 7 draws from our 18 total meetings over the years, with 6 of those victories coming from the 9 times we have hosted the Canaries. It is also a fixture which usually delivers goals, with 31 in the last 10 league meetings. Aside from the number of goals, there also seems t be a high level of top quality goals against these opponents. Who could forget the Jack Wilshere tiki-taka goal of the season in October 2013, or Aaron Ramsey's solo effort from the same game? Ramsey also scored a spectacular volley on the last day of the season at Carrow road that same season to send us to to the FA cup final on a high. Heck, even Cedric scored a belter against these opponents on his debut back in July 2020. Fair to say that may have been his peak.
As mentioned, there is an almost full compliment of players for Mikel to choose from today, with only an injured Elneny and suspended Xhaka missing from action. The returns to training that have most people are those of Ben White, Gabriel and Thomas Partey. For the first time in a long time we may well have the spine of the side on the pitch, enabling the attacking players to do their thing with confidence. When fit, they should be three of the first names on the team sheet.
With Xhaka absent for the next three games, I expect Lokonga to fill in and partner the returning Partey. As solid enough as Xhaka seems when playing next to Thomas, I have really liked what I have seen from Sambi. His willingness to pick up the ball, lose a man and drive forward, as well as his good passing ability should compliment the returning Ghanaian well. Sambi was bought for the future, but here he has the chance to make the future now.
I've picked Tomiyasu to start, because who doesn't love to see a new signing? In reality, I wouldn't be surprised if he was limited to a substitute appearance, having flown back from international duty in China this week and with limited training under his belt. I'm not going to claim to know anything about Tomi as I've never seen him play, so I will be going in to it with fresh eyes. Here's hoping he can provide the balance we need at the back to get things moving up front. Should Tomi not start, I would be inclined to start a reintegrated Maitland-Niles in his place. At this stage we know what we are getting from Chambers and Cedric, and I don't need to see more of it. If AMN is here to stay, lets give him the game time he needs.
At the top end of the pitch we actually have a lot of options, which should enable us to have a strong and intimidating bench for a change. I've gone with a four of Auba, Odegaard, ESR and Saka, but you can make arguments to start Martinelli or Pepe to start on either flank. Smith-Rowe missed out for the England U21s in midweek due to illness so could be considered a doubt, but he took full part in training. What is good to see is that if we are struggling for goals there will be plenty of options on the bench to choose from.
The final spot goes to Aaron Ramsdale for me. At this stage it is accepted that Ramsdale will be taking the number 1 from Leno in due course, with the current first choice expected to leave in the summer, or potentially earlier. With that in mind, I'd give the shirt to the guy we are backing in the long run. Although we only have a small sample size to base it on, he looked comfortable with his feet against West Brom in the league cup, and was also commanding in the air, which would no doubt instil a great deal of confidence in a back line consisting of 4 players 23 and under. If Ramsdale, Tomi, White, Gabriel and KT are going to be our back five for the next several years, lets start the process of gelling them together as soon as possible.
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| My line up v Norwich |
I've noticed that there has been a lot of consensus over the predicted starting line-up for this week, with what I have gone for seemingly the favoured 11 for a lot of fans, with a change in the three behind Auba the only real differences. This is very encouraging to me, as it suggests we finally have a team that the fans can agree on and want to get behind. Here's hoping they can deliver.
As far as Norwich go, they are also on 0 points and with 0 wins, with them only one place above us by virtue of the goal that they scored against Leicester last time out. They also shipped 5 to Manchester city, just one week prior to us, and under Daniel Farke their emphasis has always been on attacking rather than defending, although there was a slight shift in that dynamic last year in the championship. However, they have started the season shipping goals so as a team that is looking to get on the scoresheet for the first time this season, Arsenal need to fancy their chances of making inroads on that -9 goal difference. Creating chances has been a struggle for the Gunners under Mikel Arteta. This needs to be a "get right" game in that respect.
I've said previously that I wouldn't have been surprised if we lost our first three, and due to that September would be a defining month for the manager. If we are unable to get the victory today, pressure will no doubt be ramped up on a man who is already feeling the heat.
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