Friday, September 11, 2020

William Saliba set for debut but no Gabriel? How Arsenal should line up against Fulham in their Premier League opener

Two trophies in two months have got Arsenal fans salivating at the prospect of the 2020/21 Premier League season.

New signings have also helped, with three major transfers confirmed and more possibly on the way – but can they make an immediate impact in the Premier League opener against Fulham?

You can hear that match and more live on talkSPORT this Saturday.

Arsenal won the FA Cup and then Community Shield this summer

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Arsenal won the FA Cup and then Community Shield this summer

Two of the new boys are already familiar to fans with Willian a Chelsea star since 2013, while Dani Ceballos arrives for a second loan spell at the Emirates.

The Spaniard was exceptional at the end of last term, while the Brazilian gives plenty of creativity and experience after joining on a free transfer.

Another man from Brazil signing for the club is centre-back Gabriel, who moves to north London from Lille, highly-rated after his spell in Ligue 1. Arteta will hope he can toughen up his backline.

Meanwhile, we’ll also get our first glimpse of William Saliba in a red and white shirt, which is exciting given his huge potential.

But how will these new additions alter Arteta’s team for the new Premier League campaign? talkSPORT.com takes a look.

Kia Joorabchian reveals Willian joined Arsenal after being 'wooed' by Mikel Arteta

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talkSPORT will bring you more the 120 live Premier League games this season

  • Fulham v Arsenal (12:30pm) – talkSPORT EXCLUSIVE
  • Birmingham v Brentford (12:30pm) – talkSPORT 2 EXCLUSIVE
  • GameDay Live with Adrian Durham (2:30pm) – talkSPORT
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How Arsenal should look against Fulham

International duty and new signings mean Arteta won’t quite be able to field his ideal line-up at first.

Indeed, Gabriel is yet to feature since his signing for the club while Willian hasn’t had much game time with his peers either, though Arteta said they were both training well.

“They have adapted quickly. They are really excited to be here with us, really good energy from both of them. Big talent, both in very different phases of their career. One is already very established in the Premier League with incredible quality. And another one that has to adapt to this league but has huge potential to become a key player for us in the future.”

It might be the case for the first few matches we see the 3-4-3 formation continue, as the new boys get up to speed. But don’t be surprised.

A debut, though, might be on the cards for wonderkid Saliba on the right of the back-three, while Ceballos should start ahead of Elneny, a full 90 minutes would be unlikely so the Egyptian might get a role off the bench.

David Luiz is a doubt due to a neck injury and Rob Holding is set to deputise.

Saliba is a real talent and could get an early chance to impress

Getty Images - Getty

Saliba is a real talent and could get an early chance to impress

Asked if his formation will change owing to the absence of Luiz, as well as Soktrais, the manager said the team would simply adapt.

“We’ve been trying with the players that we have fit at the moment. It’s not an ideal to start the season with some key players out but again, we have enough really good players and tomorrow we will have the best possible plan to try and win our first game.”

The forward line should be the one which ended the season but don’t be too surprised if Eddie Nketiah or Bukayo Saka gatecrash the XI.

Meanwhile, the major selection headache will be whether Emiliano Martinez or Bernd Leno gets the nod in goal. It appears the former has it for now.


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