Arsenal Predicted Lineup vs. Aston Villa: Saliba Returns, Rice Avoids Sideline

Mikel Arteta will be desperate to have William Saliba and Declan Rice fit for the trip to Villa Park.

Arsenal are hopeful of having two of their cornerstones available for Saturday’s game. / Richard Heathcote/Getty Images

Arsenal have the chance to extend their healthy advantage at the top of the Premier League table, but trips to Villa Park are seldom simple.

The Gunners refused to stumble at home to Brentford in the week, meaning their lead at the summit remained five points over Manchester City, who seem to be cosplaying as Kevin Keegan’s “entertainers.”

However, Mikel Arteta’s side have struggled against Unai Emery’s Villans in the past, and a setback to kick the weekend off would allow the Cityzens to pounce, with Sunderland visiting the Etihad later in the day.

Once again, Arsenal have injury concerns, and it may not be clear until matchday as to who’ll be ready to start. Here’s the team Arteta could pick at Villa Park.

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Arsenal Predicted Lineup vs. Aston Villa (4-3-3)

Mikel Merino came up trumps for Arsenal again in the week. / Marc Atkins/Getty Images

GK: David Raya—Raya notched his first clean sheet in almost a month on Wednesday night, and an outstanding save from Kevin Schade meant he was good value for it.

RB: Jurriën Timber—Arteta tried to give Timber respite in the week, but Cristhian Mosquera’s injury meant he finished the game as a centre back. While Ben White proved his worth, the Dutchman will likely return to his usual spot on Saturday.

CB: William Saliba—It seems like Saliba’s availability will be determined by Friday’s training session, with the Frenchman sitting out of the past two games. The Frenchman is trending in the right direction, though.

CB: Piero Hincapié—Now it’s the Ecuadorian who’s running out of partners. Mosquera succumbed on Wednesday, but Saliba should be back at Villa Park.

LB: Riccardo Calafiori—The buccaneering left back was a thorn in Brentford’s defence on Wednesday night, and he should remain in the team at the weekend. He’ll likely see plenty of Villa’s industrious captain, John McGinn.

CM: Martín Zubimendi—Teams can get at Zubimendi when the game gets stretched, and Villa will surely aim to ensure Saturday’s bout is a transitional affair.

CM: Declan Rice—Arsenal are fretting over Rice’s status for Saturday, with the midfielder picking up a calf injury in the week. Arteta didn’t seem too concerned about the setback.

CM: Martin Ødegaard—Arsenal will want to assert total control in a difficult environment, and their skipper will play an important role in helping the Gunners sustain attacks. He was back in from the start against Brentford.

RW: Bukayo Saka—Saka delivered off the bench last time out and is a certainty to return to Arteta’s XI.

ST: Mikel Merino—Merino’s undroppable right now. The no-longer-makeshift centre forward was among the goals again on Wednesday, with Premier League defences struggling to deal with the Spaniard’s aerial threat.

LW: Eberechi Eze—Gabriel Martinelli and potentially Leandro Trossard are alternatives, but we saw Arteta use Eze down the left earlier in the season and he could start out wide on Saturday. That’s how he’ll most likely co-exist with Ødegaard in a fixture such as this.

Arsenal will crucially have Rice and Saliba available. / FotMob

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