Arsenal beat Sheffield United at the Emirates on Sunday in what was a drab game that was dominated by Sky Sports inane commentary.

What’s worse, a teeny tiny shirt pull that doesn’t even affect the man or a studs up challenge that leaves your opponent in a heap, clutching his ankle?

The former, apparently, if you were to listen to the Sky pundits, everyone of them agreeing David Luiz should have seen red.

Graeme Sounness seemed to take it particularly badly. According to people on Twitter, no matter the commentary team, they all seemed to think it was a red. The ref and VAR didn’t.

We don’t know how they all felt about the challenge on Aubameyang that only saw a yellow card given when a red was surely warranted. That wasn’t even a half-time discussion point.

Why am I talking about this and not the match? Because there wasn’t really much to talk about from the match. Bukayo Saka opened the scoring and Nicolas Pepe doubled Arsenal’s lead 190 seconds later.

That should have been enough but Sheffield United struck from range with seven minutes left meaning the final moments of the match were far from comfortable.

We held on, but we shouldn’t be holding on.

We need midfielders and the window closes on Monday night at 11pm. Mohamed Elneny is not the answer.

Bukayo Saka goal

Bukayo Saka (aged 19 years, 29 days) is the youngest English player to score a PL goal for Arsenal at Emirates Stadium since Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (18 years, 173 days) in February 2012. [Sky Sports]

Arsenal 1-0 Sheff Utd (61 mins)

Star Boy- Bukayo Saka nods in Hector Bellerin's cross to give Arsenal the advantage#ARSSHU

https://t.co/5wcFNYwn4E

— Sifiso Msezane (@MsezaneSifiso) October 4, 2020

Nicolas Pepe goal

https://twitter.com/SnapGoal/status/1312760144967720962

Arsenal made six changes from the side that beat Liverpool on penalties in the Carabao Cup on Thursday.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Willian, Mohamed Elneny and defenders Kieran Tierney, Hector Bellerin and David Luiz all came back in.

Arsenal XI: Leno, Bellerin, Gabriel, Luiz, Tierney, Saka (60′, Maitland-Niles 87′), Elneny, Ceballos (Xhaka 81′), Willian, Aubameyang, Nketiah (Pepe 56′).

Sheffield United made only one change from last weekend’s defeat by Leeds. Jon Egan was back from suspension and replaced Ethan Ampadu.

Sheffield United XI: Ramsdale, Basham, Egan, Robinson, Baldock, Lundstram, Berge, Osborn, Stevens, McGoldrick, Burke.

Match officials

Referee: Lee Mason. Assistants: Mark Scholes, Timothy Wood. Fourth official: Robert Jones. VAR: Andre Marriner. Assistant VAR: Peter Kirkup.

Arsenal vs Sheffield United pre-match stats

Arsenal are unbeaten in 10 games at the Emirates stretching back into last season (W8, D2).

Arsenal have failed to score in only three of their last 72 games at the Emirates.

Arsenal have not lost to a side starting the day in the relegation zone since they were beaten 1-0 by West Ham United at Emirates Stadium in April 2007.

Sheffield United, who are 19th, are hoping to end a six-match winless streak in the Premier League.

Sheffield United are the only top-flight side Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has faced that he hasn’t scored against.

Despite netting a first-half opener against Liverpool in their last Premier League (PL) match, Arsenal fell to a 3-1 HT/FT defeat. They’ve now dropped 18 points from winning PL positions since Mikel Arteta took charge – no team has dropped more during that time period. However, that result did see Arsenal score the opener before the 30th minute for the third time this top-flight campaign.

Sheffield United are in turmoil after losing their opening three matches of a new league campaign for only the third time in their history (1966/67 and 1995/96), with those defeats forming part of a six-game losing league run – their worst such streak since September 2013. The only PL side that are still to score, one positive is that they’ve at least managed a 0-0 HT draw in their last two PL matches.

The ‘Blades’ are also winless in their previous seven PL road trips (D2, L5), with their 1-0 defeat at Aston Villa in their last away outing continuing a low-scoring trend from last season, where Sheffield saw a league-low average of 2.05 match goals per away fixture.

Players to watch: The fourth-highest scoring Frenchman in Arsenal’s history, Alexandre Lacazette (51 goals in all competitions) has scored the opener in all three PL games so far.

David McGoldrick has scored Sheffield’s only competitive goal this season, and netted in the last H2H.

Pre-match Team news

Mikel Arteta reports no fresh injury concerns for Arsenal but will be without a number of players out with long-term injuries.

Sheff Utd’s Jack O’Connell has been ruled out for the rest of 2020/21 after undergoing knee surgery this week. Lys Mousset (toe) remains sidelined.

Did you know?

Alexandre Lacazette can become the first Arsenal player since Olivier Giroud in 2013/14 to score in their first four top-flight matches.

The Gunners are unbeaten in their last 40 Premier League home matches against sides starting the day in the relegation zone (W38 D2).

Sheff Utd can go four top-flight matches against Arsenal unbeaten for the first time since 1965.

The Blades are unbeaten in their last nine league matches in London (W4 D5).

Gabriel to start: Arsenal Predicted Lineup vs Sheffield United

Arsenal beat Liverpool on penalties at Anfield at the end of what was an incredibly dull game that I won’t bore you with again.

Bernd Leno saved two penalties while Mohamed Elneny was the only player to miss for Arsenal. Joe Willock scored the winner.

Liverpool: Adrian, N Williams, R Williams, van Dijk, Milner, Grujic, Jones, Wilson, Minamino, Jota, Salah.

Subs: Kelleher, Fabinho, Wijnaldum, Gomez, Robertson, Origi, Elliott.

📋 Tonight's team news…

Four changes from last week's @Carabao_Cup outing. @DiogoJota18 makes his first start. #LIVARS | #CarabaoCup

— Liverpool FC (@LFC) October 1, 2020

Arsenal: Leno. Cedric, Holding, Gabriel, Kolasinac, Ceballos, Willock, Xhaka (c), Pepe, Nketiah, Saka

Subs: Runarrsson, David Luiz, Tierney, Elneny, Maitland-Niles, Nelson, Lacazette

📋 The team news is in…

🇧🇷 @biel_m04 is handed a start
🇵🇹 @OficialCedric comes into the side
🇪🇸 @DaniCeballos46 also in starting XI

🏆 #CarabaoCup

— Arsenal (@Arsenal) October 1, 2020

Arsenal traveled to Anfield to face Liverpool in the fourth round of the Carabao Cup on Thursday 1 October.

Arsenal have won the League Cup just twice in their history (1986/87, 1992/93) which is quite something when you think they’ve won the FA Cup 14 times.

Liverpool, meanwhile, have won the League Cup eight times (1980/81, 1981/82, 1982/83, 1983/84, 1994/95, 2000/01, 2002/03, 2011/12), more than any other side in the history of the competition that started in 1960. Then again, they only have seven FA Cups.

The two sides have faced each other in the competition under its various names 16 times over the years which averages out as once every four years in the tournament.

You will, of course, remember we played them just last season, the first time in 10 years in the League Cup. It was an epic match that finished 5-5 BEFORE it went to penalties, which Arsenal lost 5-4, giving the game an overall score of 10-9.

Two of Arsenal’s four goalscorers that day, Lucas Torreira, Joe Willock, Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Gabrielli Martinelli, will not be available for Thursday’s fixture. Lucas Torreira is out with a terminal case of transferitis while Martinelli is still recovering from a serious knee injury that will keep him out of our lives until 2021.

Shkodran Mustafi will also be absent, his hamstring still in the process of reattaching itself. He scored one of Liverpool’s five.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain also scored that day which is more surprising than the fact he will miss both September games against his old side with a knee injury.

Arsenal and Liverpool previous League Cup meetings:

WON 15 Oct, 1968 – Arsenal v Liverpool 2-1 (fourth round)
LOST 07 Feb, 1978 – Liverpool v Arsenal 2-1 (semi-final first leg)
DRAW 14 Feb, 1978 – Arsenal v Liverpool 0-0 (semi-final second leg)
DRAW 01 Dec, 1981 – Arsenal v Liverpool 0-0 (fourth round)
LOST 08 Dec, 1981 – Liverpool v Arsenal 3-0 (fourth round replay)
WON 05 Apr, 1987 – Arsenal v Liverpool 2-1 (FINAL)
DRAW 02 Nov, 1988 – Liverpool v Arsenal 1-1 (third round)
DRAW 09 Nov, 1988 – Arsenal v Liverpool 0-0 (third round replay)
LOST 23 Nov, 1988 – Arsenal v Liverpool 1-2 (third round 2nd replay)
WON 25 Oct, 1989 – Arsenal v Liverpool 1-0 (third round)
LOST 11 Jan, 1995 – Liverpool v Arsenal 1-0 (quarter-final)
LOST 27 Nov, 1996 – Liverpool v Arsenal 4-2 (fourth round)
WON 09 Jan, 2007 – Liverpool v Arsenal 3-6 (quarter-final)
WON 28 Oct, 2009 – Arsenal v Liverpool 2-1 (fourth round)
LOST 30 Oct, 2019 – Liverpool v Arsenal 5-5 (fourth round, Liverpool won on penalties)
WON 1 Oct. 2020 – Liverpool vs Arsenal 0-0 (fourth round, Arsenal won on penalties)

Arsenal: P16 W6 D4 L6 F23 A22

Liverpool: P16 W6 D4 L6 F22 A23

Liverpool 3 vs Arsenal 1

Mane 28′, Robertson 34′, Jota 88′  Lacazette 25′

Liverpool: Alisson, Alexander-Arnold, Gomez, van Dijk, Robertson, Fabinho, Wijnaldum, Keita, Mane, Salah, Firmino

Subs: Adrian, Milner, Jones, Minamino, Jota, Origi, Williams

https://twitter.com/LFC/status/1310640434193076227

Arsenal: Leno, Holding, Luiz, Tierney, Bellerin, Elneny, Xhaka, Maitland-Niles, Willian, Lacazette, Aubameyang

Subs: Runarsson, Gabriel, Kolasinac, Ceballos, Saka, Pepe, Nketiah

https://twitter.com/Arsenal/status/1310649710923984898

https://twitter.com/Arsenal/status/1310640438785830912

Officials announced for Liverpool vs Arsenal

Where is Mesut Ozil?

Saka wins MOTM and gives Arteta dilemma for Liverpool

Willian keeps his spot: Arsenal Predicted Lineup v Liverpool

Arsenal beat Leicester City 2-0 on Wednesday night thanks to a goal created out of the chaos caused by Nicolas Pepe and Eddie Nketiah’s second goal in two games.

Arsenal had Bernd Leno to thank for a number of excellent saves as Brendan Rodgers’ side, that included 11 changes from their weekend team, hammered hard at Arsenal’s back line early on.

With Pepe, Nelson and Nketiah up top and David Luiz, captaining the side from the back, able to ping long balls, Arsenal seemed content to surrender position while looking to hit on the break.

There was, it has to be said, a distinct lack of panic in the Arsenal defence, playing the ball with an assuredness I’m not quite sure the fans have got up to speed with.

Just before the half hour mark, Arsenal had a really good claim for a penalty when Bukayo Saka was bundled over but, not wearing the white of Spurs nor the red of United, Peter Bankes gave a goalkick. No VAR in the Carabao Cup.

Arsenal came out pressing at high tempo from the start of the second half and Pepe’s persistence paid off when he saw his effort go in at the second attempt, via a couple of Leicester players and the post.

⚽️ Leicester vs Arsenal | Pepe (GOAL) 57' #LEIARS pic.twitter.com/4rGywUtGFV

— D9INE (@D9INE_ELITE_2) September 23, 2020

Arsenal dominated the remainder of the match, Leicester offering little by way of threat until the final 15 minutes and whatever they could muster, Arsenal found a way to repel their advances.

In the end, Pepe’s goal (which will go down as an Own Goal) looked like it would be enough to see Arsenal into the fourth round but Eddie Nketiah pounced in the 90th minute to make sure.

Leicester City: Ward, Amartey, Morgan, Fuchs, Albrighton, Choudhury, Dewsbury-Hall, Thomas, Gray, Maddison, Iheanacho

Jakupović, Justin, Tielemans, Barnes, Pérez, Praet, Knight.

Arsenal: Leno, Holding, Luiz, Kolasinac, Maitland-Niles, Elneny, Willock, Saka, Pepe, Nelson, Nketiah

Runarsson, Bellerin (Saka, 87′), Saliba, Cebllos, Xhaka, Willian (Nelson, 72′), Lacazette

Officials: Leicester City v Arsenal (19:45)
Referee: PETER BANKES
Assistants: Peter Kirkup and James Mainwaring
Fourth Official : Andre Marriner

Tierney and Soares out: Arsenal team news update pre-Leicester

Saliba debut & heavy rotation: Arsenal Predicted Lineup vs Leicester City

https://twitter.com/LCFC/status/1308753230571040768

Arsenal 2 vs 1 West Ham United

• Lacazette (24′), Nketiah (84′)                               Antonio (45′)

Arsenal: Leno, Bellerin, Gabriel, Holding, Kolasinac*, Xhaka, Ceballos, Saka, Willian, Aubameyang, Lacazette

Subs: Macey, David Luiz, Maitland-Niles, Elneny, Pepe (63′, Willian), Nketiah, Willock^

* Kolasinac replaced Tierney in the Arsenal starting lineup after the Scot picked up a hip problem which will be a concern given the problems he suffered at Celtic.

More information on Tierney’s injury can be found here.

^ Replaced Sead Kolasinac on the bench.

West Ham: Fabianski, Fredericks, Diop, Ogbonna, Cresswell, Masuaku, Rice, Soucek, Fornals, Bowen, Antonio

Subs: Randolph, Balbeuna, Johnson, Yarmolenko, F. Anderson, Lanszini, Haller.

Officials

Match report

PLAYER OF THE MATCH

MATCH STATS

Arsenal		West Ham United
62.6	Possession %	37.4
3	Shots on target	3
7	Shots	14
844	Touches	564
669	Passes	383
8	Tackles	10
17	Clearances	27
7	Corners	5
5	Offsides	2
0	Yellow cards	1
11	Fouls conceded	13

Arsenal predicted lineup vs West Ham

Arsenal take on West Ham United at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday, looking to build on their opening-day victory over Fulham so how will they lineup?

Arsenal got off to a great start in the Premier League with a 3-0 win at Craven Cottage, but they need another one at home to West Ham this weekend.

The Gunners have a really tough run of fixtures coming up, so they can’t afford to drop points at this stage. West Ham are having huge difficulties at the moment, so nothing less than a win should be acceptable.

Let’s have a look at our predicted Arsenal lineup to face West Ham.

Goalkeeper

There isn’t really any choice here anymore, sadly. Without Emi Martinez, Bernd Leno will certainly start. That’s not a bad thing, he put in a good performance against Fulham. But Arsenal are lacking a real alternative at the moment.

Centre-Backs

This is another area of the pitch where Arsenal aren’t going to have many options. Gabriel Magalhaes will probably start alongside Kieran Tierney and Rob Holding, with Mikel Arteta easing William Saliba in slowly.

Sokratis Papastathopoulos, David Luiz, Pablo Mari, Calum Chambers and Shkodran Mustafi are all out with various injury problems.

Midfield and Wing-Backs

This is one of few areas where I’m expecting Arsenal to make a change. As well as Mohamed Elneny did away at Fulham, I think Dani Ceballos will come in for the Egyptian. He looked good in his cameo on Saturday and is surely Arteta’s preference.

Granit Xhaka will start alongside him, as usual. With Tierney in the back three, Ainsley Maitland-Niles is the first choice for the left-hand side. Hector Bellerin performed very well against Fulham and will remain on the right.

Sead Kolasinac is slowly edging towards an exit, and arguably even Bukayo Saka should be ahead of him in Arteta’s current left-wing-back hierarchy.

Unfortunately, it looks like more time on the bench or at home for Mesut Özil, Lucas Torreira, Joe Willock, Matteo Guendouzi and Emile Smith Rowe (who has an injury).

Forwards

It’s harsh on the alternatives, but I think Arteta is going to stick with the same front three as against Fulham. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette both scored, whilst Willian provided a couple of debut assists.

I still believe it’s possible Arteta will try and fit Aubameyang, Lacazette, Willian and Pepe into a single team at some stage. But not quite yet, there’s too much uncertainty with the squad to switch up the system.

As for Reiss Nelson and Eddie Nketiah, they’ll have to settle for substitute opportunities. To be fair, many of those who miss out on this game should get a chance in the League Cup a few days afterwards.

Gabriel Martinelli is still out, most likely for the rest of the year.

Full Predicted Starting Lineup

Player ratings and goals here

Fulham lineup

Marek Rodak, Michael hector, Denis Odoi, Neeskens Kebano, Tom Cairney, Tim Ream, Ivan Cavaleiro, Harrison Reed, Joe Bryan, Josh Onomah, Aboubakar Kamara

Subs: Areola, Christie, Le Marchand, Anguissa, Knockaert, De Cordova-Reid, Mitrovic.

Arsenal lineup

Bernd Leno, Rob Holding, Gabriel (1), Kieran Tierney, Hector Bellerin, Mohamed Elneny, Granit Xhaka, Ainsley Maitland-Niles, Willian(3 assists), Alexandre Lacazette (1), Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (1).

Subs: Matt Macey, Sead Kolasinac, Dani Ceballos (Xhaka 78′), Joe Willock, Bukayo Saka, Nicolas Pepe (Willian 75′), Eddie Nketiah (87′)

FULHAM vs ARSENAL MAN OF THE MATCH

Willian

Pre-match Arsenal predicted lineup

Arsenal kick off the new Premier League campaign with a match against Fulham on Saturday and Mikel Arteta has named his first squad of the 2020/21 season.

Mikel Arteta hasn’t really had a single chance to test his starting lineup before the Fulham game. At first, he was missing a number of players for pre-season through quarantine and later returns from holiday. Then many went away for internationals.

The good news is that the summer additions to the squad should all be available. Dani Ceballos featured in the friendly against Aston Villa, as did Willian. William Saliba is one of few to play a full pre-season and Gabriel Magalhaes is free to join full training now.

Our Arsenal predicted lineup for the trip to Craven Cottage from before the game:

Goalkeeper

Initially, we predicted Emi Martinez would start this one, keeping his place from the recent Community Shield win over Liverpool.

However, the circumstances have since changed. Martinez is seemingly on the verge of a move to Aston Villa, and reports suggest Bernd Leno is now more likely to start the Fulham game.

Leno played well for Germany over the international break, starting in a draw against Switzerland. He seems to be quickly back in form after his injury.

The Guardian reported on Friday night that Martinez is not even in the Arsenal squad for the game.

Defence

Right now, I’m not expecting Gabriel Magalhaes to start this game. Without playing the recent friendly matches, it just feels like it will come too soon for him. The West Ham home fixture is more likely for his first start for Arsenal.

Instead, Kieran Tierney will return from international duty with Scotland to start at left-centre-back. David Luiz is a major doubt, after picking up a neck injury. It’s pretty likely he misses this one.

As a result, the other two centre-back spots will probably go to Rob Holding and William Saliba, something the Daily Mail confirm.

Shkodran Mustafi, Pablo Mari and Calum Chambers are all still recovering from injuries. Reports in the media are linking Sokratis Papastathopoulos with a permanent move away.

Midfield

Unlike in defence, the midfield pretty much picks itself, assuming Arteta does stick with 3-4-3. Granit Xhaka is in excellent form with Switzerland, and he has his favourite midfield partner Dani Ceballos back.

With Tierney in defence, Ainsley Maitland-Niles can keep his place at left-wing-back. Hector Bellerin will start on the right.

Sead Kolasinac is another one seemingly closing in on an exit, as is Lucas Torreira. Arsenal are clearly trying to move Matteo Guendouzi on, without much success. Emile Smith Rowe may be heading out on loan.

Cedric Soares will continue to play a backup role for now. Mohamed Elneny has been in strong pre-season form, but he has his work cut out displacing Xhaka or Ceballos. Same goes for Joe Willock.

Mesut Özil may well be getting a second chance, but not starting in this formation, in my opinion. He very much wants to, though.

Is Dani Ceballos fit and available to play vs Fulham?

Forwards

Even though Bukayo Saka, Reiss Nelson and Eddie Nketiah are in good form, I think Arteta will opt for the experience of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Alexandre Lacazette and Nicolas Pepe.

They’re the trio that finished the season so well, and they’re all available.

Willian is an option, but he joined pre-season as late as any of the player’s listed above and is still settling in with a new club. It’s not impossible he starts anyway, but a substitute appearance this weekend might make more sense.

Gabriel Martinelli is out with his long-term injury.

Full Predicted Starting Lineup

ARSENAL vs LIVERPOOL LINEUPS

29 August, 2020, Community Shield, Arsenal 6 Liverpool 5 (after pens)

Arsenal lineup:

Martinez, Holding, Luiz, Tierney (Kolasinac 83′), Bellerin (Cedric Soares 59′), Elneny, Xhaka, Maitland-Niles, Saka (Willock82′), Nketiah (Nelson 82′), Aubameyang (1).

Unused subs: Leno, Saliba, Smith Rowe, John-Jules, Olayinka.

Liverpool lineup:

Alisson, Williams (Minamino 59′), Gomez, van Dijk, Robertson, Wijnaldum (Brewster 90+2′), Fabinho, Milner, Salah, Firmino (Keita 59′), Mane.

Unused subs: Adrian, Grujic, Jones, Tsimikas, Elliott, Koumetio.

Man of the Match: Ainsley Maitland-Niles

Arsenal vs Liverpool predicted lineup

Let’s have a look at our Arsenal predicted lineup to face Liverpool. You can check out the status of all Arsenal’s injured players here.

Goalkeeper

Bernd Leno is back from injury and should is available, but he has only played against MK Dons since that game against Brighton in mid-June.

I’d expect Emi Martinez to keep his place for this one if he’s out of quarantine, but that might not be likely and Arteta will have to shove Leno back in.

Defence

The back-line is obviously hugely dependent on the formation Arteta chooses. He could stick with the 3-4-3, but you get the feeling he was only using that because of the players available, and he’d actually prefer a 4-3-3.

Assuming it’s a back four, we should see Kieran Tierney and Hector Bellerin in the full-back positions.

At centre-back, Arsenal still have quite a few injuries. Pablo Mari and Calum Chambers are still out, along with Shkodran Mustafi who will not be back in training until October. That leaves David Luiz, Rob Holding, Sokratis  and William Saliba.

Gabriel Magalhaes will probably need to quarantine, though that’s not entirely clear. Arsenal might not even have completed or annoucend the deal by the time the match gets here at the rate things are going.

Saliba and Holding returned to training a bit earlier, so they’re both in with a good shout, but I’d expect Arteta to stick with the experience of Luiz for a big game like the Community Shield. He’d be paired with one of the above two, and I’m hoping for Saliba.

Midfield

Arsenal’s midfield is in flux at the moment, as so many players have uncertain futures. There’s Mesut Özil and Matteo Guendouzi, who both look very unlikely to play after so many weeks out of the squad.

Lucas Torreira and Ainsley Maitland-Niles are still here, but it seems like they might not be for long. Mohamed Elneny is back from loan, but likely to leave again this summer even though he did start and score against MK Dons.

Video: Mohamed Elneny capitalises on a mistake from the MK Dons goalkeeper to slot home from near the half-way line to put Arsenal ahead. #afc pic.twitter.com/wVS9cUOSMi

— afcstuff (@afcstuff) August 25, 2020

Emile Smith Rowe is more likely to stay, especial after Arsenal turned down an offer from Monaco to sell him permanently, but he’s also just settling back in after a loan spell. Dani Ceballos is back with Real Madrid.

Granit Xhaka is the only midfield starter still at the club with no real question marks around his future. Joe Willock and Bukayo Saka are both available as well. As is new signing Willian, who may well start in midfield.

It’s guesswork which trio start, but Xhaka, Saka and Willian seem like good bets.

Forwards

In forward areas, things are a bit simpler. Assuming Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Alexandre Lacazette and Nicolas Pepe are all available, they should all start.

As for alternatives, Willian is a possibility for the front three if he’s not in midfield. Reiss Nelson ended the season nicely and could be involved, as could Eddie Nketiah.

Gabriel Martinelli is out with injury and currently back in Brazil until the end of the month.

Full Predicted Starting Lineup

Brighton womn 0 Arsenal women 5

Joe Montemurro’s side put five past Brighton on Sunday without reply to remain top of the table.

Goals from van de Donk, Beattie, Wubben-Moy and a Miedema brace made sure of the points.

Brighton team: Walcsh, Gibbons, Bowman, Kerkdijk, Le Tissier, Whelan, Kaagman, O’Sullivan, Stott, Green, Jarrett

Subs: Fiskerstrand, Connolly (Jarrett 46′), Lee (Green 78′), Heroum, Barton (Le Tissier 88′), Simpkins (O’Sullivan 87′), Williams (Bowman 66′), Longhurst

Arsenal team: Zinsberger, Maier, Williamson, Beattie, McCabe, Gut, Walti, van de Donk, Mead, Miedema, Foord

Subs: Williams, Wubben-Moy (Maer 55′), Schnaderbeck (Beattie 59′), Mace (Foord 78′), Denton

Arsenal came from behind to claim all three points against Bristol City on Sunday at Meadow Park.

Arsenal put three past Bristol City thanks to Jordan Nobbs, who captained the side in Kim Little’s absence, Caitlin Foord and, of course Vivianne Miedema.

It was Nobb’s third goal in three games and kept Arsenal on top of the table with nine points from three games. Only Everton have kept pace with the Gunners so far but Arsenal’s superior goal difference (+15 v +11) sees them in first place.

Sylvain will be along on Monday with his usual in-depth analysis.

In other FA WSL games played on Sunday, Manchester United beat Brighton 3-0, Manchester City thumped Spurs 4-1.

At the time of writing Chelsea are beat Birmingham 1-0 and Reading are beating West Ham by the same scoreline.

Arsenal 1st goal

Jordan Nobbs only scores worldies pass it on 🌶

pic.twitter.com/to2CbbubT4

— Georgia 🔸 Goulding (@GJGoulding) October 1, 2020

Arsenal 2nd goal

Caitlin Foord'un golü pic.twitter.com/hPC8Etmfow

— Genç Arsenal (@gencarsenal) October 4, 2020

Arsenal 3rd goal

👏 @VivianneMiedema pic.twitter.com/UvwlayGWVU

— Barclays FA Women's Super League (@BarclaysFAWSL) October 4, 2020

Bristol goal

Sharpshooter. 🎯

No one more deserving of a goal than @abiharrison_. 🙌#ARSBRC 🔴 0-1 🟣 [12]

pic.twitter.com/PdEwckco3u

— Bristol City WFC (@bristolcitywfc) October 4, 2020

Arsenal Team

🚨 TEAM NEWS IS HERE! 🚨

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 @JBeattie91 returns from injury
🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 @JordanNobbs8 as captain
🇳🇱 @VivianneMiedema leads the line @BarclaysFAWSL 🏆 pic.twitter.com/H62WKkr6OF

— Arsenal Women (@ArsenalWFC) October 4, 2020

Bristol City Team

𝙏𝙚𝙖𝙢 𝙣𝙚𝙬𝙨 𝙞𝙨 𝙞𝙣! 🟣🟢#ARSBRC | #BristolCity pic.twitter.com/p3rV7Jjhia

— Bristol City WFC (@bristolcitywfc) October 4, 2020

Arsenal in-match subs

⬅️ Leah Willamson

⬅️ Jen Beattie

➡️ Noelle Maritz

➡️ Malin Gut

⬅️ Jordan Nobbs

➡️ Lotte Wubben-Moy

Manchester City: Roebuck, Stokes, Bonner, Houghton (19′), Kelly, Stanway, White, Weir, Bronze, Mewis (40′), Walsh

Subs: Bardsley, Taieb, Coombs, Scott, Beckie, Morgan, Park, Lavelle, Greenwood

Here's how we line up this evening 🤩

Starting XI | Roebuck, Stokes, Bonner, Houghton (C), Kelly, Stanway, White, Weir, Bronze, Mewis, Walsh

Subs | Bardsley, Taieb, Coombs, Scott, Beckie, Morgan, Park, Lavelle, Greenwood

⚽️ @HaysWorldwide
🔷 #ManCity | https://t.co/HkTzfLv0HJ pic.twitter.com/1E6d7gP5ET

— Man City Women (@ManCityWomen) October 1, 2020

Arsenal: Zinsberger, Maritz, Williamson, Schnaderbeck, McCabe, Little, van de Donk, Nobbs (38′), Mead, Miedema, Foord

Suns: Stenson, Mace, Wubben-Moy, Beattie, Maier, Gut, Walti

📋 Here it is - our semi-final team news! 🤩@VitalityWFACup 🏆 pic.twitter.com/H2cJVS28U4

— Arsenal Women (@ArsenalWFC) October 1, 2020

A stunning goal from Jordan Nobbs, followed a minute later by a strike from Lisa Evans, who scored a second 10 minutes later and then completed her hatrick in the 90th minute saw Arsenal take a four goal lead over Spurs in the FA Cup from which the visitors were not able to recover.

Shades of the Merse in his pomp from Jordan Nobbs. pic.twitter.com/6YEQlomObl

— Larry Ryan (@RyanLarry) September 26, 2020

Lisa Evans scores her 3rd goal of the night to make it 4-0 for Arsenal. #vitalitywfacup #arsenal pic.twitter.com/q9l8lMRqxE

— Arsenal_WoSo (@Arsenal_WoSo) September 26, 2020

Arsenal: Zinsburger, Evans, Foord, Little (Mace, 88), Maritz (Maier, 82), McCabe, Miedema (Mead, 77), Nobbs (Gut 77), Schnaderbeck (Wubben-Moy 82), van de Donk, Williamson.

Subs not used: Mace, Stenson.

Goals: Nobbs 72′, Evans 73′, 84′, 90′

Spurs: Spencer, Ayane, Davison, Graham, Harrop, Kennedy, Neville, Peplow, Percival, Worm, Zadorsky.

Subs: Addison, Dean, Filbey, Green, Leon, Martin, Morgan, Quinn, Sulola.

Arsenal v Spurs: Women’s FA Cup quarter-final preview

Lineups before kick-off, latest team news here

FA WSL, 12 September 2020, 17.20, Dagenham and Redbridge Stadium

Match report and goals here

West Ham lineup: Arnold, Fisk, Flaherty, Vetterlein, Pacheco, Cho, Dali, Svitkova, Lehmann, Daly, Leon.

Subs: Brosnan, Reidsch, Dunbar, Cruickshank, Loghurst, Grant, van Egmond, Kiernan, Nor.

Arsenal lineup: Zinsberger, Maritz, Williamson, Schnaderbeck, Catley, Walti, Little, Roord, Nobbs, Miedema, Mead.

Subs: Stenon, Gut, Evans, van de Donk, McCabe, Maier, Foord, Mace.

Arsenal official preview

Match report and goals here

Arsenal Lineup

Zinsberger, Maritz, Schnaderbeck, Williamson, Catley, Walti, Roord (3), Little (1), Nobbs, Miedema (2), Mead.

Substitutes: Stenson, Gut, Evans, Van de Donk, Maier, Foord, Mace.

Reading lineup

Moloney, Leine, Mitchell, Williams, Bartrip, James, Fishlock, Eikeland, Harding, Cooper, Carter (1).

Substitutes: Nayler, Jeon, Rowe, Skeels, Quirk, Bruton, Woodham, Roberts, Harries.

Player of the Match: Jill Roord

See the goals

Arsenal: Hein, Alebiosu, Oyegoke, Dinzeyi, Clarke, Cottrell, Akinola, McEneff, Olayinka, Balogun, Lewis

Subs: Cirjan, Azeez, Okonkwo, Plange, Awe

Chelsea: Ziger, Lawrence, Simeu, Colwill, Maatsen, Bate, Peart-Harris, Livramento, Nunn, Ballo, Lewis

Subs: Wakely, Bergstrom, Fiabema, Vale, Rankine

Arsenal: Hein; Oyegoke, Ballard, Clarke, Bola; Akinola (Azeez, 79), Olayinka; Cirjan (McEneff, 59), Cottrell, Lewis (Alebiosu, 72); Balogun.

Subs not used: Okonkwo, Dinzeyi.

Spurs: Whiteman, Lusala (Omole (tr) 67), Lavinier, White, Okedina (tr), Lyons-Foster, Pochettino (Thorpe, 74), Richards (1, Etete, 86), Sterling, Markanday, Bennet.

Subs not used: Oluwayemi.

Brighton & Hove Albion u23s 2 vs Arsenal u23s 2

Premier League 2, 18 September, 2020,
American Express Elite Football Performance Centre, ko 19.00.

Brighton u23 lineup

Rushworth, Yapi, Cochrane, Crofts, Tsoungui, Dendoncker, Gwargis, Weir, Wilson, Jenks, Cashman.

Subs: Desbois, Spong, Vukoe, Furlong, Packham.

Arsenal u23 lineup

Hillson, Aleiosu, Saliba, Ballard, Bola, Akinola, Olayinka, Cottrell, Salah, Balogun, Lewis.

Subs: Ejehri, Oyegoke, McEneff, Cirjan, Azeez

Saliba then started for Arsenal’s u23s on Friday night as they drew 2-2 with Brighton and Hove Albion in Premier League 2.

They u23s went behind when Jenks converted from the spot after 34 minutes. Ben Cottrell drew the sides level in injury time before the break, the assist coming from George Lewis. James Olayinka then gave the Gunners the lead 10 minutes into the second half but they had to settle for a point when Cashman pulled Brighton level with 18 minutes to play.

Saliba played the full 90 minutes and reportedly had a mixed game.

Saliba report vs Brighton u23s: Quality on show – but also some rustiness

Arsenal u23s 1 vs 2 Southampton u23s

Match report and goals here

Premier League 2: Arsenal u23 vs Southampton u23, Friday 11 September, Arsenal Training Centre, 3pm

Arsenal lineup:

Macey, Alebisou, Oyegoke, McGuinness, Bola, Azeez, Olayinka, Cottrell, Cirjan, Balogun, Lewis.

Subs: Hillson, Ogungbo (Oyegoke 77′), Akinola (Alebisou 63′), Salah (Cirjan 58′), McEneff.

Arsenal goalscorers: Cottrell (11)

Southampton lineup:

Lewis, Kpouhmouh, Ferry, O’Connor, Ramsay, Slattery, Mitchell, Jankewtiz, N’Lundulu, Sims, Olaigbe.

Subs: Scott, Chauke (Jankewitz 46′), Watts (Olaigbe 57′), Agbontohoma (Mitchell 86′), Robise.

Southampton goalscorers: J. Sims(48). Chauke (64)

Arsenal u18 lineup vs West Ham: Graczyk, Laing, Norton-Cuffy, Kirk, Foran, Patino, Bandeira, Hutchinson, Taylor-Hart, Edwards, Flores Subs: Ejeheri, Sweet, Plange, Sagor Jr, Awe

West Ham: To come

FT: West Ham u18s 3-2 Arsenal u18s. Valiant effort to come back from 2-0 down with 10 men, but it wasn’t enough.

Arsenal’s u18s beat Crystal Palace 3-2 on 26 September thanks to a superb brace from Marcelo Flores and a goal from Khayon Edwards.

Match details courtesy of cpfc.co.uk

46 minutes: David Omilabu gives Paddy McCarthy Palace side the lead inside the first minute of the second-half. A well-taken effort from the middle of the box, after Rowan Smith found the in-form striker.

59 minutes: Marcelo Flores equalises for the Gunners with an excellent outside-of-the-box strike into the bottom right corner.

Marcelo Flores’ goals against Crystal Palace for the u18s today #AFC pic.twitter.com/nuCJPZHjGF

— Dan Critchlow (@afcDW) September 26, 2020

66 minutes: Khayon Edwards gives Arsenal the lead from inside the penalty box, getting on the end of a Kido Taylor-Hart cross.

83 minutes: Omilabu at the double, with a similar position to his first goal – only this time the forward finishes with his left foot.

86 minutes: An almost instant reply from the home side, with Flores scoring his second and the final goal of the afternoon – again, from outside the area.

Arsenal: Graczyk, Lang, Kirk (Taylor-Foran, 36), Monlouis, Ogungbo (Francis, 77), Bandeira, Patino, Hutchinson (Awe, 79), Taylor-Hart, Edwards, Flores.

Subs not used: Ejeheim, Plange.

Palace: Goodman, Smith, Adaramola, Watson, Siddik, Steele, Mooney, Wells-Morrison, Omilabu, Thiselton (Cadogan, 72), Rak-Sakyi (Akinwale, 69).

Subs not used: Bartley, Whitworth, Bello.

Stats

Possession: 60%-40%

Shots: 10-6

Shots on target: 5-3

Corners: 4-3

Fouls: 9-8

Yellow cards: 0-1

Exclusive: Khayon Edwards intends to take up Arsenal scholarship offer

Tottenham Hotspur u18s 2 vs 0 Arsenal u18s

u18 Premier League South, 19 September, 2020, Tottenham Hotspur Training Ground, 11.00

Tottenham Hotspur u18s: Lo-Tutala (c), Cesay, Hackett, Matthew Craig, Lusala, Muir, Mundle (Mathurin 68), Devine (Cassanova 86), Scarlett, John (Michael Craig 88), Santiago.

Substitutes not used: Solberg, Kyezu.

Arsenal: Graczyk; Laing, Awe, Kirk, Ogungbo (Edwards, 46); Patino, Bandeira; Flores, Hutchinson, Taylor-Hart; Plange (Vigar, 63).

Subs not used: Ejeheri, Foran, Henry-Francis.

A goal in each half saw Arsenal’s u18s lose the north London derby at Hotspur Way on Saturday.

Although they are gloating, the result was made up of one penalty (shocking I know) and a goal three minutes from the end.

Spurs u18s Coach Matt Taylor felt the victory was just reward for the players, but then he would, wouldn’t he: “We were worthy of the three points – I thought our performance from minute one, when we set the tone, was exceptional and we’re really pleased to get the win,” he said.

“We wanted to continue and take the training week we’ve had into the game, and we did that. I thought there was some exceptional play today – attacking-wise we were dominant, defensively at times we kept the ball really well, so it was a really top performance.”

Arsenal u18 4 vs 2 Southampton u18

Match report and goals here

Arsenal u18 lineup

Gracyk, Laing, Ogungbo (c), Kirk, Awe, Patino, Flores, Bandeira, Plange, Hutchinson, Taylor-Hart.

Subs: Foran, Ejeheri, Edwards (Taylor-Hart 71′), Francis, Vigar.

Arsenal goalscorers: Plange (19′) Tizzard (OG, 25′), Flores (36′), Edwards (90+8′)

Southampton u18 lineup

Wright, Otseh-Taiwo, Carson, Tshaka, Tizzard (c), Pambou, Davey, Finnigan, Smith, Babic, Rus.

Subs: Payne (Otseh-Taiwo 74′), Lillenburg, Woods, Edwards (Finnigan 46′), Pearce (Davey 64′).

Southampton goalscorers: Babic (pen, 81′), Smith (90+1′)

Crawley lineup: McGill, Davies, McNerney, Adebowale, Dallison, Sesay, Ferguson, Powell, Matthews, Galach, Watters.

Subs: Morris, Ashford, Khaleel, Al-Hussaini

Arsenal lineup: Okonkwo, Alebiosu, Dinzeyi, Clarke (c), Lopez, Akinola, Olayinka, Azeez, Cottrell, McEneff, Taylor-Hart.

Subs: Smith, Kirk, Laing, Cirjan, Plange, Edwards, Flores.