HULL, ENGLAND - MARCH 08: Olivier Giroud of Arsenal celebrates scoring the second Arsenal goal during the Emirates FA Cup Fifth Round Replay match between Hull City and Arsenal at KC Stadium on March 8, 2016 in Hull, England. (Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images)
Arsenal Predicted Starters To Face Crystal Palace
Arsenal face another tough team in Crystal Palace on Sunday, a team that has always played the Gunners tough. Here are the starters that Wenger will run with.
Despite not winning a game since before Christmas, Crystal Palace is a team that gives Arsenal fits. It seems like the games always go down to the wire and finish 2-1 to Arsenal. Which would obviously be welcome here.
However, this time around, Palace will have a familiar face on the pitch – Emmanuel Adebayor. Both Alan Pardew and myself are of the belief that Adebayor can turn himself into a bit of an Andy Carroll and cause some problems in the Arsenal box, particularly on set pieces.
Gabriel was a bit displaced by Carroll, so we have to wonder if Wenger will make some changes. Here are our predictions.
GK
Petr Cech
33, Czech
Ospina may not have been awful against West Ham, but he wasn’t exactly convincing either. The Colombian had to be absolutely pristine to keep Petr Cech out of the starting XI and he just wasn’t. Time to get back to business as usual between the sticks.
RB
Hector Bellerin
24, Spain
No need to be cute. Let Hector Bellerin keep running out there, doing what he has been doing. This little Spaniard is a blessing to watch.
CB
Per Mertesacker
4, Germany
A change has to be made, and we know it won’t be Koscielny making way. Truth is, Gabriel was a bit bullied by Andy Carroll. That hurt enough, but the risk of seeing Gabriel bullied by Adebayor is too much to stomach. Get Mertesacker in there and render the former Gunner’s striker useless.
CB
Laurent Koscielny
6, France
Not much to say that hasn’t been said about Koscielny all year. He’s the man.
LB
Nacho Monreal
18, Spain
He will have to deal with the enigmatic Wilfried Zaha. Normally, that wouldn’t worry me. But in order to be enigmatic, you have to have flashes of good to go along with the bad. It’s been awhile since he looked good. Still, this is Nacho Monreal were are talking about. He’s pretty good too.
RM
Francis Coquelin
34, France
Crystal Palace actually have a pretty decent midfield and it will be up to Coquelin to disrupt their play as always.
LM
Mohamed Elneny
35, Egypt
Stability will be huge against Crystal Palace. Arsenal need to control momentum and control the ball. Good thing that Elneny pretty much does those things in his sleep.
RW
Alexis Sanchez
17, Chile
I love that Alexis is back because it’s exciting to watch him again. He will be lined up opposite Pape Souare, who can be a disciplinary trainwreck. Look for Alexis to try to take advantage of that.
LW
Alex Iwobi
45, Nigeria
What will the young man do next? In three starts he has two goals and two assists. That is a ridiculous pace and one that he will in no way keep up. But still, he continues to impress with each successive outing and Palace haven’t exactly seen his moves before.
CAM
Mesut Ozil
11, Germany
This is going to be a physical match, so be ready for some frustration from Ozil. The German will be hounded by the likesof Yohan Cabaye and may find life difficult in the middle of the pitch. That being said, we all know by now how Ozil operates. Frustrate him all you want, he will still find that dose of magic.
ST
Olivier Giroud
12, France
Am I crazy? Probably. But Giroud has to be given a shot to show his worth before the end of the season and if there was ever going to be a game to do it, let him do it against a Palace side that is going to try to outmuscle Arsenal all day. Giroud can wreak havoc in the box against such teams and free up space for everyone else.
