The Gunners Host Wolves in Pivotal English Top Division Encounter
All eyes turn for a compelling top-flight matchup as table-toppers the Gunners host struggling Wolves to the Emirates Stadium.
Confirmed Sides
Mikel Arteta's side have opted for three changes following the XI that suffered a narrow defeat at Aston Villa in their previous outing. William Saliba, Viktor Gyökeres and Gabriel Martinelli all come into the starting eleven. The captain and Mikel Merino drop to the bench, while Riccardo Calafiori is absent. Saliba returns after missing five matches through injury.
The visitors also have made three changes to their lineup following being skelped 4-1 at Molineux by Manchester United last time out. Matt Doherty, the Brazilian midfielder and the South Korean forward come in. Hoever and Jhon Arias are on the substitutes, while Jean‐Ricner Bellegarde is not in the squad altogether.
The Teams in Full
Arsenal: Raya, White, Saliba, Hincapie, Timber, Eze, Zubimendi, Rice, Saka, Gyokeres, Martinelli.
Bench: Arrizabalaga, Odegaard, Gabriel Jesus, Norgaard, Trossard, Madueke, Nwaneri, Merino, Lewis-Skelly.
Wolverhampton Wanderers: Johnstone, Mosquera, Agbadou, Toti Gomes, Doherty, Joao Gomes, Andre Trindade, Krejci, Wolfe, Larsen, Hwang.
Subs: Tchatchoua, Mane, Lopez, Hoever, Chirewa, Arokodare, Arias, Santiago Bueno, Jose Sa.
Match Official: Robert Jones
Video Assistant Referee: John Brooks
Match Context
Welcome! And I mean, look at this …
The table tells a clear contrast. Arsenal sit comfortably at the pinnacle of the table, while Wolves occupy the bottom of the league.
… however, even though this will be the 42nd time the Premier League leaders have played the side propping up the entire table – winning 30 out of 41, with seven tied games – which team is responsible for two of the four all-time upsets? Why, Wolverhampton Wanderers, that’s who! So while the Arsenal manager will surely be expecting another three points, the Wolves boss must know that long shots occasionally succeed, and you never know. Kick-off is at 8pm GMT. It’s on!
(The remaining bottom-beats-top victories in the modern top-flight era are Oldham’s 1-0 win over Manchester United in March 1993, and Tottenham Hotspur – yeah, a surprising one - beating Liverpool in November 2008.)