Arsenal line-ups vs West Ham as Smith Rowe starts, Martinelli dropped and Zinchenko decision made
Arsenal's penultimate fixture of 2023 is at home to West Ham United on Thursday night and Mikel Arteta will be forced into making at least one change to the side that started the draw with Liverpool last weekend.
As Kai Havertz picked up his fifth booking of the season at Anfield it means he's suspended for the London derby which in turn creates an opening in midfield. Naturally, Emile Smith Rowe and Jorginho are options to start but it could be that Leandro Trossard gets the nod in the middle of the park.
Whatever decision Arteta makes, it's important that he gets it spot on as the incentive for the Gunners to claim all three points over the Hammers — avenging last month's Carabao Cup defeat in the process — is reclaiming top spot from Liverpool in the Premier League table.
And not the first time this season, football.london's writers are on hand to help and below is who they think should start for Arsenal against West Ham.
It's getting to the point where there's no real debate on who starts between the sticks. I thought David Raya was great at Liverpool despite people criticising him for being beaten at his near post by Mohamed Salah.
In defence it largely picks itself once again with all the injuries. For all the criticism he received at Anfield, Oleksandr Zinchenko could be exactly the guy who's needed to break down what will be a tightly packed West Ham defence.
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In midfield Declan Rice will start at the base against his old side, while skipper Martin Odegaard is an obvious pick. With Kai Havertz out I think it's the perfect chance to give
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