It might be too early to say with any certainty, but it's starting to look like Arsenal are getting back to their best.
Mikel Arteta's side were in dreadful form before the international break, not winning any of their four Premier League games, but have now won back-to-back games for the first time in almost two months.
The North Londoners put in a stellar performance to beat Nottingham Forest 3-0 last weekend and then did even better to smash the impressive Sporting CP on Tuesday night.
Arsenal's recent form
Team
Sporting CP (A)
Nottingham Forest (H)
Chelsea (A)
Inter Milan (A)
Newcastle United (A)
However, this afternoon brings with it a fresh challenge in a West Ham United side who beat Newcastle United at St James Park last time out, and if Arteta wants to stop the incredible £100m-rated Jarrod Bowen, he must start someone who shone in Europe.
Arsenal's star performers
So, before getting to the player in question, let's look at some of those who stood out for Arsenal on Tuesday night, starting poster boy Bukayo Saka.
saka-arsenal
The Englishman provided an assist for Kai Havertz in the first half and then picked up a goal of his own from the penalty spot at a moment when the Lisbon-based outfit threatened to get back into the game.
However, he wasn't the only winger who looked good on the night, as Gabriel Martinelli reminded fans and pundits alike just how effective he can be by scoring the opening goal of the game, which also happened to be his fourth of the campaign.
Likewise, club captain Martin Odegaard showed for the second game running how much better the team are with him at the heart of everything.
The Norwegian superstar won the penalty that Saka converted, but he did so much more than that, as his close control and general footballing intelligence were vital in allowing the team to launch attack after attack throughout the 90 minutes.
arsenal-odegaard-champions-league
With all that said, it wasn't just a night for the attackers, as one of Arteta's summer signings demonstrated just why he has to start every game he's fit for, and why he's the ideal player to bully Bowen this afternoon.
The Arsenal star who has to start against West Ham
So, with a plethora of defenders to choose from, especially on the left, Arteta has to make the right one if he wants to stop the talented Bowen this afternoon, and that would be Riccardo Calafiori.
Riccardo-Calafiori-Arsenal
The Italian international joined the club for a whopping £42m in the summer but has endured something of a stop-start beginning to his Arsenal career due to a few injuries he's picked up since moving to England.
However, when he's been fit, the former Bologna star has been simply sublime, both in his ability to maraud up the pitch "like a wild horse on the loose," as journalist Sam Dean puts it, and in his ability to drop back and do the defensive side of the job.
Calafiori's scout report
Statistics
Pass Completion
Aerials Won
Interceptions
Assists
Non-Penalty Goals
Passes Attempted
Non-Penalty Expected Goals
Clearances
All Stats via FBref
We can see this duality in the 22-year-old's game best when looking at his underlying numbers, as according to FBref, he sits in the top 2% of full-backs in Europe's top five leagues for pass completion and aerial duels won, the top 7% for interceptions, the top 11% for assists, the top 12% for non-penalty goals and more, all per 90.
Moreover, this, combined with the fact that he stands at 6 foot 2 and is seemingly unfazed by the pressure, is why he has to go against Bowen this afternoon, as he has all the skill required to lock the Englishman down while posing a real attacking threat himself.
In fact, his ability to hurtle down the byline should help him keep a handle on the former Hull City ace as well, as he'll have to think about tracking back more often than if it was Jakub Kiwior there, for example, or even Oleksandr Zinchenko who cannot pose the same physical threat.
Ultimately, Arsenal will be favourites heading into the game at the London Stadium, and rightly so, but if Arteta wants to give his team the best chance of claiming all three points, he must start Calafiori.
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