Mikel Arteta’s high-flying Arsenal travel to the Czech Republic tomorrow as they face Slavia Prague in the UEFAChampions League.
An impregnable defence and dangerous attack make the Gunners one of the toughest prospects in world football, something that has taken years of cultivation before bearing fruit.
Arteta may look to rotate his team, but he must respect their opponents if they are to secure the three points.
Arsenal’s depth offers rotation options
Many Arsenal fans were fearful of rotating the squad against Brighton in the Carabao Cup last week. However, a youthful side won out 2-0 victors, providing supporters with confidence heading into the rest of the season.
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The likes of Cristhian Mosquera, Mikel Merino and Gabriel Martinelli can slot into the starting XI without disrupting the momentum of the team. This is something that Arsenal have lacked for several years.
Slavia Prague offer a different challenge and will be looking to upset the Gunners, so Arteta will have to manage the changes wisely. He is already without Martin Zubimendi through suspension, with Declan Rice only one booking from succumbing to the same fate.
Prague is a familiar destination for the Gunners
Slavia Prague have hosted Arsenal before in the Europa League quarter finals of 2021. The Gunners defeated their opponents 5-1 on aggregate, winning 4-0 away from home.
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Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli and Gabriel Magalhães are the three survivors from the squad that travelled, highlighting the change required for the Premier League leaders to get to the position they find themselves in.
Although Arsenal went on to lose to the eventual winners, Villarreal, Arteta will be hoping that his side can repeat the feat and come out of Prague with victory.
The hosts themselves have endured a period of change, but one of the few constants is manager Jindrich Trpisovsky, who met Arteta when the sides last met.
Trpisovsky has overseen four league titles since his appointment in the 2017/18 season with Slavia Prague, a Champions League regular during his tenure. The Czech manager will be hoping to cause an upset on Tuesday.
Can Norgaard protect the Gunners' clean sheet record?
With Zubimendi suspended, Christian Norgaard is the most obvious stand-in for the Spaniard.
After departing Brentford in the summer, the Danish midfielder has struggled to find regular minutes at the Emirates Stadium but has been fully involved in the embryonic stages of the Gunners’ Carabao Cup run.
Norgaard impressed for the Bees and should get the nod to start tomorrow, but how does he compare to Zubimendi?
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Over the last year, Zubimeni has proved himself better on the ball with a higher passing accuracy and more passes completed, likely due to Real Sociedad being a more possession-based side than Brentford.
However, Norgaard has been a better attacking threat and made more interceptions and tackles. Again, this could largely be interpreted as being due to the differences between their former clubs, but the Dane is a very solid backup option to have amongst the Arsenal ranks.
With the Gunners being a terrifying prospect from set-pieces, Norgaard could even find himself on the scoresheet. The former Bees midfielder was the most effective goalscorer from such scenarios, scoring 9 out of 11 (81.8 per cent) of his Premier League goals from them.
With all this considered, Arsenal will hope to get the job done in Prague on Tuesday evening.