Nottingham Forest FC v Arsenal FC - Premier League 2026/27
Photo by David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Images
For all the talk about the depth in Mikel Arteta’s squad, his team for Anfield on Sunday almost picks itself.
David Raya will start in goal, with Jurrien Timber, Ezri Konsa, Gabriel and Riccardo Calafiori in front of him. With Bukayo Saka out and Max Dowman suspended, Noni Madueke (if he’s fit) and Eberechi Eze will start out wide, and Kai Havertz, Arteta’s go-to in the big games, will lead the line.
Declan Rice and Martin Odegaard are undroppable in midfield. The only real uncertainty is who plays alongside them.
Who should partner Declan Rice and Martin Odegaard?
Under Andoni Iraola, Liverpool don’t necessarily like to have too much of the ball — at least not as much as we would typically expect a Liverpool team to. That suggests Arsenal could see more of the ball at Anfield than they have in years, but they’ll need to cope with Liverpool on the break.
Bruno Guimaraes is the option most likely to win the game on his own. He’s creative, he’s aggressive, and he’s a goal threat, including from set-pieces. But he can get drawn forward without covering what’s behind him, and he doesn’t have the pace to recover. That’s exactly where Liverpool thrive.
Mikel Merino offers something else Arsenal are short of: goals. With Saka out and the strikers misfiring, he’s a presence in the box when Havertz drifts wide, and he was excellent as part of a fluid midfield against Everton.
Myles Lewis-Skelly is the calm option. He’s brilliant under pressure, his passing is safer, and he’s great at winning fouls. That’s no small thing against a Liverpool side that commits the fifth-most fouls in the league, when Arsenal are the most fouled team.
Bruno Guimaraes should start at Anfield
It’s a tricky call, but Bruno just about gets our vote. Anfield will be intense, and he gives Arsenal more steel and the potential to bully Liverpool’s midfield. He started Arsenal’s toughest game of the season in Munich and grew into it after a difficult afternoon at Brighton. He has been the difference maker in tight affairs.
He isn’t as technically secure as Lewis-Skelly, though, and nobody could complain if Arteta went with the youngster for control. Then Bruno can do what he’s done so often this season: come off the bench and make the difference. He’s already scored late winners against Sunderland and Leeds as a substitute.
Arsenal haven’t won a league game at Anfield since September 2012. Whoever starts, Arteta has hardly had a better chance to end that run.