Crystal Palace and Arsenal face off for the second time this week, and Mikel Arteta will aim for another win to rejuvenate a title challenge.
Wednesday night’s Carabao Cup quarter-final was a dress rehearsal of sorts for Oliver Glasner as he prepares his Crystal Palace side to face Arsenal for the second time this week. The Eagles took the lead at the Emirates early through Jean-Philippe Mateta after an error from Jakub Kiwior and held on to the lead heading into the break.
Their lead was cut short by an Arsenal side rejuvenated by the presence of regular performers, as Gabriel Jesus’s hat-trick proved enough to secure a passage to the semi-finals. A late Eddie Nketiah strike against his former side did bring some momentary excitement in the final minutes, but the Gunners held their own to see out the win.
Heading into this match-up on Saturday, Palace are unbeaten in their last five Premier League games, and Glasner will hope his players have what it takes to stop Arsenal. The Eagles have been improving of late, and while they have a four-point advantage over the nearest relegation side, Glasner would still want to put daylight between them and the bottom three.
Mikel Arteta was delighted at the performances his side put earlier this week, especially with Jesus. The Arsenal boss will hope the Brazilian will return to his best after the hat-trick probably took a huge weight off his shoulders. A win over Palace ensured the Gunners booked their place in the Carabao Cup semi-final as they will take on Newcastle United next.
With that semi-final set aside for next year, along with the next UEFA Champions League game, Arteta will want to focus completely on matters in the Premier League. Arsenal have dropped valuable points on consecutive matchdays against Fulham and last weekend against Everton.
The latter of those ended in a goalless draw, as Arsenal failed to take advantage of Liverpool dropping off against Fulham. Either way, Arteta will now be concerned about any more slip-ups, as he will demand a near-perfect run of games between now and the end of the calendar year to stay relevant in what is already looking like a difficult title challenge.
Team News & Tactics
Crystal Palace
As mentioned before, the midweek game was a dress rehearsal for Crystal Palace as Oliver Glasner could pick an identical team that faced Arsenal at the Emirates. That could include teenager Caleb Kporha, who deputised for Daniel Munoz, who was available for midweek but suspended for the weekend following an accumulation of five yellow cards.
Hence, Kporha will have another shot at being the right wing-back for Crystal Palace, although Glasner does have other options in Nathaniel Clyne if needed. On the injury front, some key stars are missing, with Adam Wharton headlining the list of absentees, while the list also includes Matheus Franca, Chadi Riad and Joel Ward. Former Arsenal defender Rob Holding remains out of the picture at Palace and will not be involved.
As for the team selection, it will be surprising if Glasner does make any changes to the one that started in midweek, meaning Jefferson Lerma and Will Hughes are the main midfielders for Palace. At the back, Trevoh Chalobah, Maxence Lacroix and Marc Guehi will form a partnership, while Tyrick Mitchell will continue on the left flank.
Mateta will continue to lead the line while Ismaila Sarr and Eberechi Eze feature in behind the Frenchman. There were some rumours in the aftermath of Wednesday’s game that Eze might have an ongoing fitness issue, and should he miss out by any chance, then Daichi Kamada will likely take his spot.
Probable Lineup (3-4-2-1): Henderson; Chalobah, lacroix, Guehi; Kporha, Hughes, Lerma, Mitchell; Sarr, Eze; Mateta
Arsenal
There were some positive updates from Arteta in his pre-match presser, as Riccardo Calafiori and Oleksandr Zinchenko are both available, and it will be interesting to see who starts at left-back. Myles Lewis-Skelly has impressed recently, and there is a possibility the teenager is picked for this trip to Selhurst Park.
Declan Rice is also thought to be fit for tis game, and given how Mikel Arteta has always selected the midfielder when available, he will be the first choice in the midfield unit on Saturday. Jurrien Timber could move to his main positon at right-back that could see Thomas Partey return to his customary central midfield role alongside Rice and Martin Odegaard.
Gabriel Magalhaes and William Salba should be the main defenders at the back, and Jakub Kiwior is widely expected to return to the bench. Arteta will remain cautious over the game time his defenders have, as his backline is still lacking the necessary depth ahead of the festive schedule.
Bukayo Saka will continue on the right, while Arteta will have to choose between Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard for the left flank, with the latter performing well in tandem with Gabriel Jesus in the attacking third. The Brazilian will be expected to lead the line following his stellar hat-trick in midweek, and Kai Havertz will be an option off the bench for Arsenal.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Raya; Timber, Saliba, Gabriel, Lewis-Skelly; Odegaard, Partey, Rice; Saka, Jesus, Trossard
Key Stats
Arsenal have won their last five matches against Crystal Palace in all competitions.
Arsenal are undefeated in their last six matches in the Premier League
Arsenal have not lost a London Derby in this calendar year.
Crystal Palace are undefeated in their last five matches in the Premier League.
Crystal Palace have lost five straight games to Arsenal in all competitions.
Player to Watch
Gabriel Jesus
Embed from Getty Images
Some sections of the Arsenal fanbase are doubting whether Jesus will start against Crystal Palace on Saturday. The Brazilian has been shy of goals this year, and this week’s hat-trick will have done his confidence a world of good as he also looked sharper than ever in that performance.
It will be catastrophic for him not to start against Crystal Palace in back-to-back games, as the wide expectation is that he will lead the line. Jesus will hope to open his account in the Premier League at the weekend, and so will the fans, as a top-notch performance on Saturday could prove pivotal for his and Arsenal’s season.
Prediction
Crystal Palace 0-3 Arsenal
Crystal Palace will have known some attacking patterns that Arsenal used in midweek and would have worked in the background to improve their flaws. However, they are likely to field the same team, and their loss in midweek could play a role in the proceedings at the weekend.
Arsenal are improving in their attacking setup, and Martin Odegaard, Bukayo Saka, and Gabriel Jesus will have another good game in the final third. The Gunners are expected to keep an away clean sheet and finish the game with a healthy scoreline of three goals or even more if they click into top gear.