In the upcoming fixture, Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal will face Atalanta in their first UEFA Champions League match of the season. Atalanta are the defending UEFA Europa League champions. So, they are a difficult opponent for the Gunners.
On the other hand, Arsenal are also in good form. Last week, they defeated arch-rivals, Tottenham Hotspur, with a score line of 1-0. There is some good news for the Gunners fans because some important players will be back for this crucial Champions League match.
Mikel Arteta, in his pre-match press conference, has informed that Riccardo Calafiori and Bukayo Saka have trained with the first team. So, it is expected that both of them will be available for today’s match against Atalanta. Recently, Calafiori got injured in a friendly game against Finland. Arsenal fans were scared that the new signing would be sidelined for a long time. Therefore, this update is great news for all the fans.
Expected Arsenal lineup
Arteta has confirmed that Saka will be available for the game, after receiving a knock in his previous game. As a result, the fans can expect the usual front-line for the Gunners, consisting Saka, Kai Havertz, and Gabriel Martinelli. Later on in the game, Arteta can introduce his other attacking options, in the form of Gabriel Jesus, Leandro Trossard, and even new signing, Raheem Sterling.
In the midfield, we can see the partnership of Declan Rice, Thomas Partey, and Trossard. Arteta had to change his formation in the previous game due the absence of Rice and Odegaard. However, with Rice returning, Arteta can again shift back to his typical 4-3-3 formation. In Odegaard’s absence, Trossard could be seen playing the creative role, as a three man partnership of Rice, Partey and Jorginho might be too defensive.
In his press conference, Arteta said that Riccardo Calafiori has trained with the first team and will be available for the upcoming match. This means that we can see the Italian clock in some minutes in today’s clash. A backline of Ben White, William Saliba, Gabriel and Jurrien Timber is expected. We are expecting that Saliba and Gabriel will produce the same performance just like they have been doing in the Premier League.
After the departure of Aaron Ramsdale, David Raya has become the absolute first-choice goalkeeper for the Gunners. Arsenal will also have the newly signed, former FC Barcelona goalkeeper, Neto, as Raya’s backup.
Predictions for the Match
According to football.london, Mikel Arteta stated that he feels the Champions League is far more difficult than the Premier League because of the unknown opponents. For making a strategy, one should know their opponent properly. If a manager can decipher that, then only can he make new strategies for his team. But teams from all over Europe play in the UEFA Champions League. Each year, some new teams enter the competition. Sometimes these things can affect the outcome of the match. So, Mikel Arteta is afraid of these things.
It is expected that Gasperini will employ Ademola Lookman, Nicolo Zaniolo, and Gianluca Scamacca in the front-line of Atalanta. Each of them is an extremely dangerous player. On top of that, Atalanta wing-backs, Sead Kolasinac and Juan Cuadrado, will try to utilize the physicality and heading ability of Gianluca Scamacca, who is very sharp in the box. Charles De Ketelaere can pull strings from the middle of the pitch. For Kolasinac, this will be an interesting game because he will be playing against his former club. So, it is going to be a difficult fixture for the Gunners.
Despite the challenge posed, we expect Arsenal to win this clash with a narrow margin of 2-1. With the momentum and the confidence that the Gunners got after beating Tottenham, it is expected that they will manage to pick up the 3 points and start their Champions League journey in style. However, a draw also seems very likely to happen, as the defending Europa League winners are a stubborn side, who can surprise Arteta and his men with their quick and counter-attacking football.
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