Premier League leaders Arsenal visit Everton on Saturday evening with Mikel Arteta facing a difficult selection decision on the right wing
07:54, 18 Dec 2025
Mikel Arteta
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Mikel Arteta faces a selection conundrum
Premier League frontrunners Arsenal are set to face Everton on Saturday evening, but could find themselves overtaken before the match even begins. Mikel Arteta's squad have only suffered two top-flight defeats this season.
The Gunners had a tougher challenge than anticipated in their last match against Wolves at home. A last-minute own-goal by Yerson Mosquera secured three points for Arteta's team.
A formidable trip to Hill Dickinson Stadium is up next, and with second-place Manchester City playing on Saturday afternoon, Arsenal could be knocked off the top spot before their game starts. City are just two points behind.
Bukayo Saka is tipped to shine as the Gunners head to Merseyside, but the performance of another winger has reportedly caused a selection "conundrum." Daily Star Sport brings you the latest from the Emirates.
Bukayo Saka issue emerges
A male athlete, wearing a white and blue sports jersey with red accents, appears jubilant and holds a red scarf close to his face, possibly after a successful event.
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PARIS, FRANCE - MAY 7: Bukayo Saka of Arsenal looks dejected during the UEFA Champions League 2024/25 Semi Final Second Leg match between Paris Saint-Germain and Arsenal FC at Parc des Princes on May 7, 2025 in Paris, France. (Photo by Marc Atkins/Getty Images)(Image: Getty)
Saka was sidelined earlier this season due to a hamstring problem but has made a strong comeback to lead Arteta's attack. The only snag is that he seems to have displaced a promising summer signing, reports the Mirror.
Noni Madueke was snapped up from Chelsea this summer and ex-Manchester City defender Micah Richards believes Arteta has a "conundrum" on his hands as both continue to excel in the right-wing position.
"I feel Arsenal have a little bit of a conundrum because Madueke is playing really well and Saka is their best player," said Richards, speaking on The Rest Is Football podcast.
"They are too reliant on Saka all of the time. If you look at the goals that [Leandro] Trossard or [Gabriel] Martinelli score, they need to do what Saka is doing on the right-hand side."
Everton talisman questionable
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall of Everton is helped off the pitch by Reece James of Chelsea after sustaining an injury during the Premier League match between Chelsea and Everton
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Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall was withdrawn with an injury(Image: Getty)
One player who remains doubtful for Saturday's encounter is Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall. The inventive midfielder has been absolutely sensational for the Toffees this campaign but hobbled off during their defeat to Chelsea.
David Moyes disclosed that "tightness" in Dewsbury-Hall's hamstring forced his early withdrawal against his previous employers Chelsea. Jack Grealish also "felt his hamstring a little bit" in the setback, too.
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Moyes subsequently informed Match of the Day: "Losing Kiernan was a blow to us but I thought we adapted quite well. It disrupted us for about 10 to 15 minutes. I thought we'd started the game well. In that period, we just lost the goal...
"It's hard to be disappointed with a lot of the stuff we've done. But I'm disappointed because we didn't win, disappointed because we've got a couple injuries, but not disappointed with how the players are going about it."