Arsenal will look to keep their top-four hopes alive when they host one of their competitors for a Champions League spot in Manchester United at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday.
Following a 2-0 defeat to Premier League title contenders and arch-rivals in the final ever north London derby at White Hart Lane last weekend, the Gunners are six points behind fourth-placed Manchester City with just five fixtures of the campaign remaining, and five points behind their opponents on Sunday.
After a disappointing and lacklustre 3-0 defeat to Crystal Palace last month, Arsene Wenger switched to a 3-4-3 formation and it was a move that seemed to be working as they picked up three successive wins in all competition before the loss to Spurs.
The French manager is likely to stick with the system for the visit of Jose Mourinho’s men this weekend but he faces a tough task to take all three points against the Red Devils, who are unbeaten in their last 25 top flight matches.
Here is our predicted Arsenal XI that will destroy United…
Petr Cech
While he is the undoubted number one goalkeeper under Arsene Wenger, Cech will be well aware that he has kept just one clean sheet in his last five appearances in all competitions for the Gunners.
The 34-year-old’s incredible record of never saving a penalty he has faced for the north London outfit continued last weekend as he was beaten from the spot by Harry Kane, and he will be determined to prevent United from finding the net on Sunday.
Shkodran Mustafi
While the Germany international has impressed at times during his debut season in the Premier League, at other times he has struggled – his last Gunners appearance came in the 3-0 defeat to Crystal Palace last month.
He has been missing with a thigh injury since then but after Arsene Wenger confirmed that he had returned to training this week, he could shore up a defence that looked far from comfortable during the north London derby defeat last weekend.
Laurent Koscielny
The 31-year-old was far from his best at White Hart Lane last Sunday and he will be aware that the defence should have reacted quicker to stop Dele Alli’s goal.
The Frenchman is one of the only leaders in the current Arsenal team, and he will know that he will need to be at his best and to keep his teammates organised if they are to stop the likes of Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial and Wayne Rooney from finding the net on Sunday.
Gabriel
Like Mustafi, the Brazilian has had an up-and-down season in terms of performances and his showing at White Hart Lane last weekend certainly wasn’t one of his best.
Arsene Wenger would have wanted his team to try and keep it tight after Dele Alli’s opening goal last weekend, but just a couple of minutes later Gabriel gave Tottenham the chance to double their lead when he stuck his leg out in the penalty area.
The resulting spot-kick effectively ended the match as a contest and he will want to bounce back against United.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain
With Hector Bellerin struggling for form this season Chamberlain has been preferred in the right wing-back role in recent matches by Arsene Wenger, and he has impressed.
As with his Arsenal teammates, he struggled against Tottenham at points last weekend as he continues to learn about being defensively aware, but he did do well to put off Dele Alli as the Spurs star looked destined to score during the first half.
His next challenge could come against Anthony Martial and he once again needs to make sure he is on his game.
Aaron Ramsey
Much was said about who would come out on top in the central midfield battle between Ramsey and Granit Xhaka and Tottenham duo Victor Wanyama and Eric Dier in the final ever north London derby last weekend, and there is no doubt that it was the latter pair.
The Wales international has failed to find the top form he has shown in recent seasons and he will be looking to put that right and put in a starring performance in what is a crucial clash for his side if they are to qualify for next season’s Champions League.
Francis Coquelin
It’s fair to say that the midfielder isn’t the most popular figure among the fans following some below-par performances this season, but he could be called back into the starting XI by Arsene Wenger on Sunday with Granit Xhaka being a doubt because of injury.
If he is recalled, Coquelin could come up against his French compatriot Paul Pogba at the Emirates and he will need to provide a strong shield in front of the three centre-backs in order to keep the United frontline quiet.
Nacho Monreal
After scoring in the FA Cup semi-final success against Manchester City and picking up the assist for Robert Huth’s winning own goal against Leicester City, the Spaniard might have hoped that he would be named on the left-hand side for the north London derby.
However, with Shkodran Mustafi still absent and Rob Holding named on the substitutes’ bench he was once again named as one of the three centre-backs with Kieran Gibbs as a left wing-back.
That is likely to change for the visit of United this weekend with Mustafi set to return, and Monreal will be looking to provide an attacking threat, as well as keeping the likes of Jesse Lingard and Antonio Valencia quiet.
Mesut Ozil
In all truth, despite a crazy couple of minutes ultimately costing Arsenal the north London derby, they created few chances at White Hart Lane and it is something that must change going forward if they are to secure a top-four finish.
After also drawing blanks in the defeats to West Bromwich Albion and Crystal Palace earlier this year, Arsene Wenger needs players like Ozil to step up and create opportunities for his teammates if they are to get results – starting with the visit of a resolute Manchester United defence on Sunday.
Alexis Sanchez
As we mentioned previously, Arsenal hardly troubled the Tottenham defence last weekend and when you have players like Sanchez and Ozil in your side, it simply isn’t good enough.
While the Chile international shows his world-class ability at times, on other occasions he goes missing and makes the wrong decisions.
With the injuries mounting up for Jose Mourinho, Sanchez could come up against a makeshift United defence on Sunday and he needs to take advantage of it as we know he can.
Olivier Giroud
In the corresponding fixture between the two sides earlier in the season, United looked set to secure a deserved win after Juan Mata’s second half goal, but substitute Giroud rescued a point for the Gunners with a towering 89th-minute header – their first shot on target in the match.
Arsene Wenger will know that the Frenchman can cause problems in the air for the potential United centre-back partnership of Eric Bailly and especially Daley Blind, and that could prove to be a key battle if the hosts are to get the win they so desperately need.
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