Mikel Arteta knows that his Arsenal side will need to swiftly return to winning ways when they welcome Luton Town to the Emirates on Wednesday.
Arteta watched his team deliver an extremely resolute performance against Manchester City on the weekend, but it’s now time for the handbrake to come off.
That point against Pep Guardiola’s side means very little if Arsenal aren’t able to back it up with a win against Luton.
Rob Edwards’ team are certainly no pushovers, as Tottenham Hotspur found out on Saturday, but Arsenal know that nothing other than three points will be acceptable.
And with that in mind, and the busy schedule also considered, The Boot Room believes that Mikel Arteta could make up to three changes to his Arsenal side against Luton.
A fair few players looked tired in the closing moments against City, namely Bukayo Saka and Ben White, and therefore we could see significant changes.
And whilst we are not predicting either of those two Englishman for a rest, we do believe that Kai Havertz may drop to the bench.
Mikel Arteta could line up Gabriel Jesus as his Arsenal striker against Luton Town
As well as a rest for Kai Havertz, we believe that both Jakub Kiwior and Jorginho could drop out of the side.
And that would mean a long awaited starting return for both Takehiro Tomiyasu and Thomas Partey, as well as central move for Gabriel Jesus, who is ready to show his ‘unbelievable’ levels once again.
Of course, the third change would also see Gabriel Martinelli return to the XI, with Mikel Arteta confirming his readiness to play 90 minutes in his press conference today.
It’s certainly a strong Arsenal team, and Arteta will be paying due respect to a Luton side who have scored in all of their last 18 Premier League matches – a remarkable record.
Arsenal injury update ahead of Luton Town
Of course, having hobbled off in the dying moments against Man City on Sunday, Arsenal fans may be concerned about the fitness of Bukayo Saka.
However, Arteta did confirm today that Saka was ‘fine’ and said a decision will be made on whether he’s fit to start.
We’ve included him in our Arsenal XI, a player who always plays when he’s available, but it’s definitely a close call.
Otherwise, Arteta did also confirm that Jurrien Timber was making good progress, and suggested he may now play some under-21 games.
Arsenal’s predicted XI vs Luton: Raya; Tomiyasu, Gabriel, Saliba, White; Rice, Partey, Odegaard; Martinelli, Jesus, Saka.
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