Arsenal are looking to bounce back from their FA Cup exit against Manchester United with victory over Cardiff City in the Premier League on Tuesday.
Arsenal are now out of both cup competitions, but they’re still fighting on two important fronts. The Europa League trophy and a top-four league finish are both up for grabs, but Unai Emery’s side really need to step up their game to have any chance in either case.
Even with a game against Manchester City at the weekend, Arsenal need to start as strong as they can and get the three points against Cardiff first. Let’s have a look at our predicted Arsenal lineup for the match.
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Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang will presumably both keep their places for this one. Aubameyang is still by far the top scorer at the club, whilst Lacazette is the top assister, so it’s hard to leave either of them out when you need to guarantee the three points.
Behind them, Aaron Ramsey has started the last couple of games, forcing Mesut Özil to the bench. However, against the likes of Cardiff, rather than Chelsea and Manchester United, the German will surely be preferred.
Arsenal will spend much less time pressing their opposition into mistakes and more trying to break down the opposition defence. That’s exactly the kind of game you have Özil in the squad for.
Alex Iwobi will also drop to the bench, with Henrikh Mkhitaryan still not fully back fit after his injury.
Click ‘Next’ for the full Predicted Starting XI