Declan Rice is still not available for Arsenal ahead of their game with Bournemouth(Image: Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
Arsenal take on Bournemouth in the Premier League, aiming to open up a seven-point gap to title rivals Manchester City before they host Chelsea. The win over Aston Villa brought plenty of confidence for the Gunners, even if they were missing some key stars.
Declan Rice pulled out ahead of the match due to a knee injury, one that Mikel Arteta confirmed is yet to be fully recovered from, putting the midfielder in significant doubt for being available against the Cherries. Antoine Semenyo is expected to play despite it looking likely he will join City this month.
Arsenal were beaten twice by Bournemouth last season, the only side to successfully do so. However, for the Gunners to win the league, they will need to reverse such scorelines this time around.
Here is who **football.london** thinks will start this clash:
**David Raya**
Unlucky not to have another clean sheet against Villa after producing one of the saves of the season once again. Another on the south coast would go a long way to securing victory.
**Jurrien Timber**
The right-back now has help in the form of Ben White, who recovered from his injury to replace Timber in midweek. Timber, though, is doing well to cement himself as the best right-back in the league.
**William Saliba**
The Frenchman welcomed his typical partner back to full fitness and it appears to have even improved his own form for the club as the Gunners hope for a clean bill of health compared to their first season reality.
**Gabriel**
Back and with a bang after the Brazilian scored for Arsenal during their win over Villa. The Gunners’ threat in both boxes will be a major weapon for the side and could be the spark to see them take it all.
**Piero Hincapie**
Riccardo Calafiori is out of the match, and it appears that the Ecuador international has moved ahead of Myles Lewis-Skelly to become the first choice left-back while the Italian is unavailable.
**Martin Zubimendi**
A brilliant performance against Aston Villa, topped off with a goal, and now the Spaniard must continue without Declan Rice in midfield as his partner.
**Mikel Merino**
More needs to be examined regarding the role of Mikel Merino in midfield, as it has been trickier to discern his contributions, with his forays forward being more appreciated.
**Martin Odegaard**
The Arsenal captain has hit a strong patch of form, scoring and assisting in the last two games, making him undroppable from the team, with Eberechi Eze searching for minutes.
**Bukayo Saka**
Bukayo Saka continues to be dangerous but goalless in the last few games and will hope he can find the net again in the place where he once scored his very first goal.
**Gabriel Jesus**
Gabriel Jesus has earned the chance to start here, and his goal against Villa was the perfect catalyst to improve his return to fitness.
**Leandro Trossard**
Currently Arsenal’s most in-form forward player and another who simply cannot be dropped from the side.