Arsenal travel to Brentford on Thursday knowing there is little margin for error in a title race that could tighten further before kick off, and the team news in west London offers a mixed picture for both sides.
Keith Andrews has confirmed what we already knew – that forward Kevin Schade will serve the second match of his three game suspension after a straight red card in the 1-0 win at Villa Park.
Loanee Reiss Nelson is ineligible against his parent club.
Former Gunner, Josh Dasilva remains sidelined with a knee ligament issue, and both Fabio Carvalho and Antoni Milambo will miss the rest of the campaign after ACL injuries.
Despite the physical demands of their back-to-back away victories over Aston Villa and Newcastle United, Andrews insisted there are no fresh concerns. “It was a very intense game,” Andrews began. “It always is when you play Newcastle, and the players were excellent on that front.
“We have the usual knocks and bruises, but nothing major that concerns anything for the selection for tomorrow.”
On Ouattara, who followed up his winner at Villa with a late decider against Newcastle, Andrews added: “He’s in good form. He’s been brilliant. It’s been a tad disjointed. The nature of him moving club, the season had already started when he signed. I love working with him. He’s quiet by nature. His ceiling is high.
“His approach to what we do and how we go about it is very selfless, which is an important part of what we ask from the players on certain occasions. He defends selflessly and the quality he has is in no doubt.”
For Arsenal, Mikel Arteta is managing his squad across a packed schedule. Bukayo Saka, Martin Odegaard and Leandro Trossard are all fitness doubts after recent issues, with Trossard having gone off in the win over Sunderland.
Arteta’s update was brief. “[Bukayo, Martin and Leandro], we will see,” he said.
Max Dowman remains unavailable as he continues his recovery from his ankle injury. “Max is still not available. However, he’s doing very well.
“I think he will be with us in a week or so, and then he can pick up the rhythm and be available for us.”
Arteta also addressed the situation of Mikel Merino, who underwent foot surgery earlier this week following a stress fracture that will rule him out for several months. “I think the doctors were really happy with the way [the surgery] went,” he explained.
“Now it’s the start of obviously a long process, we’re talking about bone healing. So, we’ll respect the timings, and I’m sure he’s going to do everything he possibly can to speed up that recovery.
“The timeframes, we’re talking about months – whether it’s three, four or five, we don’t know.”
Brentford sit seventh after adapting impressively to the departures of Thomas Frank, Christian Norgaard, Yohan Wissa and Bryan Mbuemo, and remain firmly in the European conversation.
Yet their recent record against Arsenal offers encouragement for the visitors. Since Brentford’s first Premier League win over Arsenal in August 2021, they are winless in eight meetings. Arsenal have won their last three league visits to the Gtech Community Stadium by an aggregate score of 7-1, and have lost only one of their last 23 Premier League London derbies.
With Manchester City capable of cutting the gap at the top on Wednesday night, Arsenal’s task is clear. Three points are essential against a side who have already beaten Villa away with 10 men and claimed victory at Newcastle.
In a season defined by fine margins, this will not be a night for complacency.