Good morning and happy Friday to all.
We’re in on FA Cup action tonight as we travel to Manchester to take on Man City. I’ve seen a lot of discussion about how we deal with cup competitions this season, with suggestions that we shouldn’t do anything that could jeopardize our Premier League title chances. And look, I get it.
Except the two things are not mutually exclusive. There’s this thing called the double that we’ve done more than once, but I understand why some people might be a little wary of how a busy schedule can affect us. What I can say though is that I’m pretty sure Mikel Arteta will see this as a competition he wants to win and tonight’s game has special meaning for him on a personal level as well. He was Pep Guardiola’s assistant, the two are still great friends and he worked at City for several years. So far, he hasn’t won a game against them as manager, and with two league games to play between now and the end of the season, there is a psychological aspect to this game that could well be important.
Update: I forgot the little matter of an FA Cup semi-final in 2020. Doh!
Thinking about this game yesterday, I was convinced that we would see some changes. Not too many, but a few. Especially in the wide positions. For example, I think I could start with Kieran Tierney and Takehiro Tomiyasu in the full-back positions. These guys were first-choice full-backs last season, so it’s not like you’re sacrificing a huge amount of quality, and they need to play and feel included.
Likewise, later on, I saw this as a chance to get some big minutes for Emile Smith Rowe after his return from injury, but I’ve seen some rumors this morning that he may not have made the trip. That’s not confirmed, and it would be a bit embarrassing if it were true because this was an opportunity to start building his fitness for the match. I thought he and Leandro Trossard might get the nod, but if Smith Rowe is out then one of Bukayo Saka or Gabriel Martinelli has to start. The Belgian on the left and Saka on the right probably make the most sense.
After that, I don’t think it will do anything to the backbone of the team. Maybe Matt Turner will play ahead of Aaron Ramsdale (maybe), but I expect to see William Saliba and Gabriel in center half and Thomas Partey and Granit Xhaka in midfield. In that area of ​​the pitch, with Mohamed Elneny injured and the club seeing reinforcements, I don’t think we have much choice. Albert Sambi Lokonga has been disappointing this season against far less impressive opposition, so it’s hard to trust him to simply fire it up against City.
I’m a bit torn about the Martin Odegaard/Fabio Vieira decision. My gut feeling is that it will go with the captain, but as with Smith Rowe, cup competitions are a way to include players who have been on the sidelines. Not just to give them minutes to keep them happy, but to make sure they’re up to speed if they’re needed in the Premier League. However, it would be hard to do without Odegaard’s quality and influence, and I believe he will form the back end of that midfield triumvirate. So all in all a strong side, and despite what I said earlier about full-backs, if it was Oleksandr Zinchenko and Ben White instead of Tomi and Tierney, I wouldn’t blink an eye.
The fact is that we have eight days after this before we play again. It’s not like we have to factor in a midweek game or anything like that, and while we may harbor some fears that injuries could affect us, I don’t think the coach or the players approach games with that kind of mindset. Anyone who thinks Mikel Arteta could get weak in this game for fear of something that’s not statistically very likely to happen hasn’t been paying attention to how he operates.
Before the game, the coach said:
It’s a great game and a great test for us against, in my opinion, the best football team in the world. I’m looking forward to it because it will tell us a lot about where we are.
Obviously it’s important to win and play well. That gives you more drive, more confidence and better prepares you for the next game, and that’s our approach to doing it on Friday.
Of the three times we’ll face City this season, this is the least important in my opinion, but that doesn’t mean it’s not important. If you go there with a weakened side and they pat you, it’s not good preparation for the league game in a couple of weeks, even if you say ‘It’s just the cup, we made changes’. It’s also not to say that winning tonight will secure all three points in the league, but we haven’t had a good result against them in a long time, and that’s a psychological barrier that could be useful to break earlier.
Given all of that, the connection between the two coaches and the respective quality of both teams, we could see a very intense game tonight. You implement a winning culture by taking every game seriously, and these two coaches will be desperate to win. It could be a mug cookie.
Ok, let’s leave it there for now. As always, we’ll have live blog coverage for you later, and all things post-game on Arseblog News. I leave you with a new Arsecast below.
See you later for the game and let’s go, Reds!
