Rotation and some familiar faces for Brighton cup clash

Morning all.

Arsenal are in EFL Cup action this evening, taking on Brighton at home. It’s a chance for Mikel Arteta to really rotate ahead of our weekend trip to Burnley, and the team news yesterday was that both William Saliba and Gabriel Martinelli will miss out tonight, with the manager not specifying any timeframe for either of them. Declan Rice, Riccardo Calafiori and Bukayo Saka are all ok and available.

There’s plenty of scope for rotation almost everywhere, except the forward line, with Arteta saying:

That’s where we have more difficulties as well with Noni, with Kai out, with Gabi Jesus out, with Gabi Martinelli out as well. So that’s the area that we have to be more careful as well, more conscious, because we don’t have that many options. So, as I said, we’re going to try to manage the load as good as possible to make sure that the players are fresh, they can compete really well and the team can maintain the level that it’s showing.

I think ideally tonight would be a game to give Viktor Gyokeres a rest, because he’s played a lot and I think looks just a touch fatigued. The absence of Martinelli complicates that a bit, and if he uses Mikel Merino up front instead, he’s got to find a place for someone in midfield he might otherwise feel like a giving a rest to.

Further back though, there are all kinds of options, with the manager quite effusive about the late summer signing Piero Hincapie. We haven’t seen much of him so far, but Arteta said:

He’s a warrior; he’s going to bring such intensity, physicality, and emotion to the team as well. He’s quality on the ball; he’s a player who is super keen. He can play inside, he can play in wide positions, he’s done it, as you said, in different ways, and now we need to get him up to speed because the moment that physically he’s at his best, he’s going to raise the level.

So, we could see a team like this: Kepa, White, Mosquera, Hincapie, Lewis-Skelly, Norgaard, Nwaneri, Merino, Trossard, Gyokeres, Saka.

If he wanted to play Merino up front, he could use Declan Rice or Eberechi Eze in midfield instead, and if that’s what the choice was I’d go with the latter first. Rice came off against Crystal Palace late on with some kind of issue, and while I know Eze is getting used to this playing every three days schedule, I’d be loath to risk Rice aggravating anything.

There’s also Max Dowman to consider, and whether he’s in the frame for a start. It’s easy to forget he’s only 15, but it’s certainly part of Arteta’s thinking. Speaking about him in his press conference yesterday, he said:

We have to manage his load. He is 15 years old, still growing, there are a lot of things we have to make sure are under control to make sure he develops in the way he can. A lot of new things that are happening to him with the national team, playing with two different group ages, and with us, and then prepare games with another team. We have to manage that.

I wouldn’t be averse to him starting tonight at all, but clearly it’s one Arteta has to give some serious consideration to. As for tonight’s opposition, we know they’re a very good side, with some quality players – including former Gunner Danny Welbeck who is in fantastic form at the moment. They also have a very good record at our place in recent visits, winning three of their last five at the Emirates.

And as for the importance of this particular competition, which is low on the list of priorities for fans who want to see the team lift the title after so many years, Arteta said:

Today it’s the most important one, because it’s the game that we have tomorrow. It’s a competition that we haven’t won it for many, many years. It has to start tomorrow. We have to do a great game in order to be able to beat a very good Brighton side. We know that. We are prepared for that and we have to show it on the pitch.

That is the culture he is trying to instill, but I do think tonight’s team selection will generally reflect where it ranks. Nevertheless, it’s important for the ‘fringe’ players to get minutes, and hopefully a chance for them to show what they can do. Not just in this game, but across the season because they will be needed in the league, Champions League, and FA Cup too.

Right, I’ll leave it there for this morning. Just a quick note, we’re not going to have any live blog coverage later on. We’ve been having some technical issues with the new version of the live blog, we know it’s frustrating for users and it’s frustrating for us too. As such, we’re going to work on it until such time as we can get a proper handle on the issues, and I’ll keep you updated on a timeframe for its return. Sorry for the inconvenience but it’s the best thing to do.

You will find the match report, player ratings, post-game reaction and all the rest on Arseblog News as normal though.

Have a good one.