Arsenal predicted lineup vs Wolves: Will Arteta select Emile Smith Rowe or Gabriel Martinelli in his 4-3-3 shape for Thursday’s Premier League clash? (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)
Arsenal round off the month of February with a second meeting with Wolves inside a fortnight as they play hosts for Thursday’s Premier League clash. Here is the predicted lineup.
The scorelines may not paint a comfortable picture but the bottom line is that Arsenal have a perfect record so far from their 17 cup finals. Sadly they’ve only competed in 11.7% of them.
Wolves at the Emirates Stadium is vital, as while ‘six-pointers’ often refer to relegation battles, in some ways this has similar implications. With both vying for a top four spot in the table, victory would see Arsenal build a healthy cushion of five points between themselves and Bruno Lage’s with a game in hand.
Having beaten them last time out at Molineux there will be confidence in the home side, with plenty of the focus now on what team will Mikel Arteta select.
Arsenal predicted lineup vs Wolves: Will Arteta select Emile Smith Rowe or Gabriel Martinelli in his 4-3-3 shape?
The big decision lies in the forward line where the returning Gabriel Martinelli from suspension will be eyeing up his spot out on the left. But can you take Emile Smith Rowe out of the side after a goalscoring performance against Brentford?
There are strong calls for Alexandre Lacazette to be dropped, yet at this stage it would take a remarkable dip in form for the manager to consider axing the captain.
Another interesting decision to make is at right-back. Takehiro Tomiyasu is back fit and firing, and was not risked as a substitute in the 2-1 win over the Bees. In his place was Cedric Soares, who somewhat surprisingly has put in two of his better performances for the club in his last two outings.
Arteta made a similar call earlier in the season when Nuno Tavares earned his spot ahead of Tierney, so might he looks for similar healthy competition in a position few expected there to be any?
LONDON, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 18: Takehiro Tomiyasu interacts with Ben White of Arsenal during the Premier League match between Arsenal and Crystal Palace at Emirates Stadium on October 18, 2021 in London, England. (Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)
Goalkeeper & Defenders
Aaron Ramsdale (GK) – Should we be a little concerned? Ramsdale appeared to be back to his best against Wolves only to have a mediocre game with the ball at feet against Brentford. He’s still the undisputed number one, mind you.
Takehiro Tomiyasu (RB) – Arteta will absolutely be considering keeping Cedric in the team. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see him use Tomiyasu as a substitute late on, but his height is a key attribute when combating Wolves’ sweeping diagonal balls so he should get the nod.
Benjamin White (CB) – It’s going under the radar just how excellent White has been this season. He isn’t getting the praise he deserves while Tyrone Mings drops a clanger every week and that fridge up in Manchester continues broadening the spectrum of calamity.
Gabriel (CB) – Received praise for his Brentford display but there were some worrying aspects too. His distribution out from the back was quite sloppy and it played the visitors in too often. Needs to clean that up a bit.
Kieran Tierney (LB) – It is interesting for Tierney to see who lines up on the left of the attack, as it does impact how he gets forward and where he receives the ball. It’s a slightly newer role for him in the 4-3-3.
Continued on next page…
February 22, 2022</a></p></blockquote>
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<h2>Arsenal predicted lineup vs Wolves: Will Arteta select Emile Smith Rowe or Gabriel Martinelli in his 4-3-3 shape?</h2>
<p>The big decision lies in the forward line where the returning Gabriel Martinelli from suspension will be eyeing up his spot out on the left. But can you take Emile Smith Rowe out of the side after <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2022/02/23/arsenal-predicted-lineup-wolves-esr-gabi/"https://paininthearsenal.com/2022/02/22/next-phase-arsenal-rebuild-goals-summer/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a goalscoring performance</a> against Brentford?</p>
<p>There are strong calls for Alexandre Lacazette to be dropped, yet at this stage it would take a remarkable dip in form for the manager to consider axing the captain.</p>
<p>Another interesting decision to make is at right-back. Takehiro Tomiyasu is back fit and firing, and was not risked as a substitute in the 2-1 win over the Bees. In his place was Cedric Soares, who somewhat surprisingly has put in two of his better performances for the club in his last two outings.</p>
<p>Arteta made a similar call earlier in the season when Nuno Tavares earned his spot ahead of Tierney, so might he looks for similar healthy competition in a position few expected there to be any?</p>
<div id="attachment_120081" class="wp-caption aligncenter">
<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-large wp-image-120081" src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2022/02/23/arsenal-predicted-lineup-wolves-esr-gabi/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_389,w_590/https%3A%2F%2Fpaininthearsenal.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2017%2F07%2F1347323059-850x560.jpeg" alt="Arsenal, Tomi" width="590" height="389"><div class="fs-center-img">
<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">LONDON, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 18: Takehiro Tomiyasu interacts with Ben White of Arsenal during the Premier League match between Arsenal and Crystal Palace at Emirates Stadium on October 18, 2021 in London, England. (Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)</p>
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<h2>Goalkeeper & Defenders</h2>
<p><strong>Aaron Ramsdale (GK) –</strong> Should we be a <em>little </em>concerned? Ramsdale appeared to be back to his best against Wolves only to have a mediocre game with the ball at feet against Brentford. He’s still the undisputed number one, mind you.</p>
<p><strong>Takehiro Tomiyasu (RB) – </strong>Arteta will absolutely be considering keeping Cedric in the team. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see him use Tomiyasu as a substitute late on, but his height is a key attribute when combating Wolves’ sweeping diagonal balls so he should get the nod.</p>
<p><strong>Benjamin White (CB) –</strong> It’s going under the radar just how excellent White has been this season. He isn’t getting the praise he deserves while Tyrone Mings drops a clanger every week and that fridge up in Manchester continues broadening the spectrum of calamity.</p>
<p><strong>Gabriel (CB) –</strong> Received praise for his Brentford display but there were some worrying aspects too. His distribution out from the back was quite sloppy and it played the visitors in too often. Needs to clean that up a bit.</p>
<p><strong>Kieran Tierney (LB) –</strong> It is interesting for Tierney to see who lines up on the left of the attack, as it does impact how he gets forward and where he receives the ball. It’s a slightly newer role for him in the 4-3-3.</p>
<p><em>Continued on next page…</em></p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2022/02/23/arsenal-predicted-lineup-wolves-esr-gabi/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> Midfielders </a>
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<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-large wp-image-123759" src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2022/02/23/arsenal-predicted-lineup-wolves-esr-gabi/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_389,w_590/https%3A%2F%2Fpaininthearsenal.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2017%2F07%2F1366478483-850x560.jpeg" alt="Arsenal, MO" width="590" height="389"><div class="fs-center-img">
<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">LONDON, ENGLAND – JANUARY 23: Martin Odegaard of Arsenal during the Premier League match between Arsenal and Burnley at Emirates Stadium on January 23, 2022 in London, England. (Photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)</p>
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<h2>Midfielders</h2>
<p><strong>Martin Odegaard (AM) –</strong> <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2022/02/23/arsenal-predicted-lineup-wolves-esr-gabi/"https://paininthearsenal.com/2022/02/20/odegaard-arsenal-magician-major-flaw/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">His form</a> since the beginning of December has been exceptional. While he’s shown his talent off throughout that time, there was a newfound level of confidence and borderline arrogance in the win over Brentford.</p>
<p>His flicks, tricks and vision were a delightful to behold, as was his blossoming partnership with Bukayo Saka.</p>
<p><strong>Thomas Partey (DM) – </strong>Partey has always been a defensive midfielder, but he’s been one with that extra dimension to him that fans have seen glimpses of across his time in north London.</p>
<p>This new role limits that, though, where his masterful screening and defensive positioning provide the base for Arsenal, as well as offer greater balance in distribution playing through the thirds.</p>
<p><strong>Granit Xhaka (AM) –</strong> <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2022/02/23/arsenal-predicted-lineup-wolves-esr-gabi/"https://paininthearsenal.com/2022/02/22/arsenal-improvement-best-demonstrated/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">New system</a>, new predicted lineup, new….weirdness.</p>
<p>It feels off listing Xhaka as anything other than a central midfielder, and while his role still encompasses many of his usual defensive traits, this new system sees him operate higher up the pitch with a different set of tasks.</p>
<p>Given the level of the opposition it might be more central midfielder than left-sided No. 8, however.</p>
<p><em>Continued on next page…</em></p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2022/02/23/arsenal-predicted-lineup-wolves-esr-gabi/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> Forwards </a>
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<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-large wp-image-123805" src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2022/02/23/arsenal-predicted-lineup-wolves-esr-gabi/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_389,w_590/https%3A%2F%2Fpaininthearsenal.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2017%2F07%2F1238619204-850x560.jpeg" alt="Arsenal, ESR" width="590" height="389"><div class="fs-center-img">
<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">Arsenal’s English midfielder Emile Smith Rowe (R) celebrates with Arsenal’s French striker Alexandre Lacazette (L) after scoring the opening goal of the English Premier League football match between Arsenal and Brentford. (Photo by IAN KINGTON/AFP via Getty Images)</p>
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<h2>Forwards</h2>
<p><strong>Bukayo Saka (RW) – </strong>‘If Saka could finish he’d be devastating’. Well, he looks like he can finish alright.</p>
<p>A sumptuous strike against Brentford sealed the points for Arsenal, with Saka in exceptional form coming into this match with five goals in his last six <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2022/02/23/arsenal-predicted-lineup-wolves-esr-gabi/"https://www.90min.com/leagues/premier-league" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Premier League</a> outings. Wolves, beware.</p>
<p><strong>Alexandre Lacazette (ST) – </strong>It will take something remarkable for Lacazette to lose his place. While he’s heavily flawed, it’s getting boring and repetitive constantly mentioning it, even if it’s an unavoidable talking point every week.</p>
<p>He needs a goal. Hopefully there is a penalty awarded to Arsenal and he breaks his long duck in front of goal.</p>
<p><strong>Emile Smith Rowe (LW) – </strong>It’s one of the most welcome selection calls Arteta will have had to make throughout his entire tenure. He has two forwards, 21 and 22 years old respectively, who are crucial to the team and both know where the goal is. Only one can play.</p>
<p>Given he looked sharper and fitter last time out, the prediction is that Smith Rowe will get the nod, probably for 70 or 80 minutes, and then Martinelli will have to wrestle his place back.</p>
<div class="fs-shortcode" data-type="StoryLink" data-theme="dark" data-text="4 benefits of 4-3-3 system" data-url="https://paininthearsenal.com/2022/02/21/arsenal-4-benefits-4-3-3-tactical-shift/" data-call-to-action="Next"> <div class="story-link-next"> <a class="story-link-next-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="story-link-next-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2022/02/23/arsenal-predicted-lineup-wolves-esr-gabi/"https://paininthearsenal.com/2022/02/21/arsenal-4-benefits-4-3-3-tactical-shift/"> <span class="call_to_action">Next:</span> 4 benefits of 4-3-3 system </a> </div>
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<p>It’s wonderfully healthy competition.</p><!—pageview_candidate—>">
