Arsenal are first up off the back of the September international break, as they face a Nottingham Forest side that are suddenly a completely different proposition.
After Evangelos Marinakis opted to rid the club of tension and part ways with successful manager Nuno Espirito Santo, the Forest owner replaced the Portuguese with his ideological opposite.
In comes former Tottenham Hotspur manager Ange Postecoglou, three months removed from his Spurs sacking. Arteta never lost to the Australian during their north London tussles, and the Spaniard requires a return to winning ways after their slender defeat at Anfield two weeks ago.
Arsenal were the biggest net spenders of the summer window, and a variety of fresh faces are set to be included in Arteta’s starting XI against Forest on Saturday.
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GK: David Raya—There was little he could do to prevent his first concession of the new season, with Dominik Szoboszlai’s stunning free-kick beating many. It’ll be interesting to see how busy he is this weekend.
RB: Jurrien Timber—Ben White returned to training in the week, but Arteta should retain the sturdy Timber at fullback here. His matchup with Callum Hudson-Odoi could be key.
CB: Cristhian Mosquera—William Saliba is set to miss out, but Arsenal fans aren’t as stressed as they might’ve once been. Mosquera looks the part, and he’ll fill in for the Frenchman here.
CB: Gabriel—The Brazilian won’t have his usual partner on Saturday, but his performance levels are unlikely to waver.
LB: Riccardo Calafiori—The maverick Italian has been the preferred option at left-back to start the season, and there should be chances for Calafiori to do some damage going forward. Myles Lewis-Skelly’s watching brief continues.
CM: Martín Zubimendi—It’s been a fairly quiet start to Premier League life for Zubimendi, but that’s simply who he is. The Spaniard goes about his work in a serene manner.
CM: Declan Rice—Rice’s set-pieces came to the fore over the international break, and although Forest’s woes from such situations were fixed last term, they’ve just appointed a manager who has previously disregarded the importance of set-plays.
CM: Martin Ødegaard—The captain had a productive break, and supporters will want to see the slickest iteration of him manifest on Saturday.
RW: Noni Madueke—His signing was questioned by many, but Madueke’s talent has been on full display for club and country at the start of the new season. The winger will once again step in to fill the void left by Bukayo Saka.
ST: Viktor Gyökeres—The Swede will encounter a pair of brutes in the Forest defence this weekend, but he may benefit from them being 40 metres higher up the pitch than they want to be.
LW: Eberechi Eze—Eze may not slot into Arsenal’s midfield right away, but he has to be in the team. Gabriel Martinelli has struggled too much to keep his place.
