Strongest Arsenal Line-up To Face Sunderland – Bench Ozil And Start Giroud

Arsenal strongest line up against Sunderland

After a disappointing defeat at the hands of Bayern Munich in the first leg of the knockout phases of the Champions League, Arsenal now host relegation threatened Sunderland on Saturday. The Gunners are currently second in the Premier League table, will aim to get all three points in their kitty against Gus Poyet’s men. The Black Cats come into the clash at the back of a 1-0 win in the FA Cup against Southampton and will optimistically travel to the Emirates hoping they can get at least something from London. Arsene Wenger however knows his team cannot afford to drop further points in their quest for the Premier League crown. Can Arsenal get back to winning ways and what will be Wenger’s strongest possible squad? We here at Soccersouls have the answers for our readers.

Goalkeeping And Defense:

Wojciech Szczesny should, after his sending off against Bayern, should start in goal and the Pole would fancy to garner a clean sheet against the struggling Sunderland outfit. However the Black Cats do carry a significant goal threat but would find it extremely hard to score against Arsenal come at the Emirates.

Nacho Monreal should start in the left wing back slot, replacing  Kieran Gibbs in the starting eleven. The young Englishman came off the field on Wednesday, clutching his hamstring and the home side will miss his vibrant attacking instincts and equally commendable defensive organization. Bacary Sagna should start in the right back slot with Mertesacker and Koscielny as the centre back defensive partnership. The English-German pair will have to stay put the entire course of ninety minutes to keep their pace at the top of the table.

Midfield:

Either of Mikel Arteta or Mathieu Flamini should start alongside Jack Wilshere in the central midfield just ahead of the back four. I would have certainly preferred Flamini thanks to his immaculate defensive and screening duties ahead of Arteta’s recklessness but it’s a decision for Wenger to make. However, Mesut Ozil should certainly be benched following his disastrous show against Bayern and the former Real Madrid player deserves some rest as his price tag is constantly bogging him down. Ozil looks a shadow of his former self who was lethal at Real and should be dropped instead, playing Cazorla in the no 10 role. Rosicky is expected to draft on the left while Arsenal’s best player at the moment, Oxlade Chamberlain should play out on the right. This triumvirate should be looking to pull defenders out of position and make space for the lone striker up front.

Strike force:

After Yaya Sanogo’s two hurrays, Olivier Giroud is expected to lead the Gunners front-line after being amidst all the controversy surrounding him. The Frenchman was alleged to have cheated his wife, but later pleaded innocent through Twitter, and with his ball holding skills and directness coupled with his movements off the ball should create space for the midfield in order to gain a win at the Emirates on Saturday.

Predicted Line-up

Szczesny

Sagna   Mertesacker    Koscielny   Monreal

Arteta        Wilshere

Ox                                                    Rosicky

Cazorla

Giroud