It’s morning everyone. Now there it is again 😉
We face Crystal Palace in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals this evening for a place in the semi-finals. There isn’t much news from the team. Other than confirmation, they will be left without Riccardo Calafiori and Oleksandr Zinchenko, and a decision will be made on Declan Rice’s fitness before kick-off.
I think there will still be changes in the side at this stage of the competition, but I expect them to go further forward rather than at the back with limited options. We know the right-back situation and the only realistic way to rest William Saliba is to play Jurrien Timber at centre-back, so it’s complicated. Jakub Kiwior could come in and this was certainly a game where Myles Lewis-Skelly was earmarked as the starter. However, the injury situation means he will be needed for the last two games as well. Could Kieran Tierney be included in the equation?
Jorginho could be seen in midfield and, like his young team-mate, Ethan Nwaneri will be looking to seize the opportunity. His last two cameos off the bench haven’t been as impactful as he (and we) would have liked, but he tends to be more effective when he starts. If we can’t play Raheem Sterling in the front three this game, when can we play him? I think he will come in to replace Saka on the right. There will be Leandro Trossard on the left and Gabriel Jesus in front.
There is a lot of experience, but production is low recently. Trossard has played in 22 games this season, scoring four goals and two assists. Sterling has scored a goal and two assists in 10 brief appearances, with his only strike in an Arsenal shirt coming in this contest against lower league opposition. Jesus’ only goal in the last 34 games came in the last round against Preston. During the Brazilian’s performance, Arteta made it clear that there was nothing wrong with the way he was working, but that he needed to produce in front of goal.
I don’t know if it’s confidence, but he definitely has the will to get the ball in the back of the net and start to have momentum on it. Because at the end of the day, he’s playing in a position where he has to deliver in the moment and he’s really trying.
Tonight will be a great night to get his shooting boots back. For all the analysis, discussion and tactical talk about why we don’t score goals as often as we would like, the large number of players who don’t score consistently is – to me anyway – ultimately the main problem. reason. Until we can do something about it, whether in January or later, it’s the coach’s job to get more out of these guys. And I wish him good luck.
As for Palace, they have found some form after a good start to the season and come into this season on the back of a fine win in the Premier League against Brighton. We know where they are dangerous and in a cup tie situation we will be hoping this is a more open football game than the last couple we have played in. May we meet their threats and use that space to create our own dangers.
As for this competition, I don’t think there’s any way for us to get all puffed up about it. Isn’t it the most important of the four? Obviously so. Do you want to win more Premier League or Champions League titles? Again, it’s clear. But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try to win this game too. We’ve built a really good team over the years, but we also need dinnerware. The title challenge has been great, but the players want medals and the fans want trophies. This is a competition we must take seriously. Especially considering how close the final would be if they win tonight.
Okay, I’ll leave it there for now. Later you can join in on the live blog coverage and get match reports, goal clips, reactions, player ratings and more from Arseblog News.
Until then.
