It’s been a disappointing week for Arsenal fans. After a thrilling 4-3 win against Leicester City in Matchweek 1, Arsenal went away to Stoke to see themselves lose 1-0 after a debut goal from Jese. Even with most of the possession, Arsenal couldn’t find a breakthrough. Of course, there was a shout for a penalty early in the first half and Lacazette’s strike was called offside. Sometimes you need a little bit of luck to squeak out wins in the Premier League and Arsenal didn’t have that on their side. The one bright spot of this week was seeing the group that Tottenham got dealt in the Champions League draw (Dortmund & Real Madrid). We might be seeing them in the Europa League before we know it.
On to the match this weekend. Arsenal travel to Liverpool to face Jurgen Klopp’s side who are coming off a 4-1 thrashing of Hoffenheim. Arsenal will need to be very organized at the back to hold off Liverpool’s offensive weapons. And that’s a bit worrisome because what we’ve seen out of the Arsenal backline hasn’t been anything to write home about this season. Mane and Sallah will most likely be on the flanks with Firmino up top.
The real question at hand this weekend is will Arsene Wenger resort back to the back four? Or could we see a back three with the likes of Mustafi, Mertesacker and Koscielny (back from suspension)? It would be nice to see a back three of center halves instead of one center half and two left backs. There needs to be a vocal leader in the back that can organize the line, especially against the quick wingers that Liverpool will deploy and Mertesacker might be the man to do it. It seems that Arsene Wenger doesn’t have too much trust in Mertesacker, knowing that he was fit for the game last week and the performance he put out in the FA Cup final and Community Shield (before his injury).
Excited to see Alexis Sanchez make his Premier League debut as he returns to action against Liverpool. There have been rumblings all summer long about his potential departure from the club but so far, Arsene Wenger has been able to fend them off. With only a few days left in the window, it seems that Alexis will finish out his contract with Arsenal.
For some reason, the Predicted Starting XI is getting tougher and tougher as the week’s go on but here it goes:
Cech; Monreal, Koscielny, Mustafi; Bellerin, Kolasinac; Xhaka, Ramsey; Alexis, Ozil, Lacazette
Here’s to an Alexis and Lacazette hat-trick!