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Official Arsenal team to face Vitoria – Pepe starts

Official team news – Pepe starts for the game against Vitoria.

The official team news is out and there are no real big surprises. As expected, it is a mixture of youth, fringe players and experienced stars.

This is a game that Unai Emery has to get right, he certainly needs a big performance from the lads. The team is strong enough to win but as usual, a lot depends on the formation and tactics.

Here is the official team, let me know in the comments what you think. Is this a team that is good enough to beat the Portuguese opponents? Has Emery got it wrong once again?

The game kicks off at 15.50 UK time. Match Preview here and for comparison, our predicted lineup.

Links to streams will be put in the comments where to watch the game live and free so keep checking in.

Also, if you go to the official Arsenal website you will be able to get live commentary text and Arsenal radio.

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76 Comments

  1. Bellerin’s benched for taking the mick out of Unai, in the press conference, starting with good ebening 😂
    Surprised Torreira’s on the bench!

  2. Should be enough to win
    I expect Lacazette to come on but hopefully Martinelli will score again for us like he did in the last two matches

    Would be great to see another good performance by Pepe and another goal

    COYG make it 12 points

  3. Not a bad line up, looks like it’s gonna be a 343 setup…. But none of our 4 captains start? Wonder who is getting the armband 🤔

  4. Bellerin , Toriera and Chambers rested ahead of Liecester game maybe. I just wish our team can stick to a formation to allow players get used to a style rather than tinkering kthe set up all the time.

    Hopefully Zaka and Pepe will pick up form again with a good performance here.

    Martinelli should continue is goal scoring record too.

    1. Both of Bellerin and Chambers are not rested.

      It seems rather it’s a 3-4-2-1 with Maitland Niles as a wing back for which he is better suited than Chambers. If he decides to focus, that is.

  5. 3-4-3 is the formation that Emery should have been implementing from the beginning.

    This allows an extra defender in place of a midfielder since arsenal has very few quality midfielders now.

    1. THAT’S EXACTLY WHAT I’VE BEEN SAYING BUT EMERY ALWAYS IGNORE MY CALLS, EVEN WHEN I SAY GUD EBENING

  9. Let me pull some Kev stunts here today😂😂

    Arsene Wenger to Bayern Munich is verbally a done deal 98% sure of it.
    Of CU’s if I end up wrong, I’ll swallow it, but I’m confident this one is true

      1. Lol… Sue I’m serious though, I’m 99% confident it’s a done deal between Wenger and Bayern

        1. Be nice to see him back in the dugout again… and if we keep playing as crap as we are right now, we won’t be playing them any time soon, Eddie!!

  10. I don’t know why emery keeps changing the system, football is about consistency. It sow the seed of doubt in everybody’s mind I hope we will do well

  23. After 20 minutes gone and NOT one shot on target for us. Defence looks dodgy and Mustafi booked already. Good chances for Vitoria and have basically been unmarked in the box on set pieces..

    Not rating our chances if things stay like this!

  24. When the manger has changed his system so much, the players will definitely get confused, there will not be consistency in the team. Blunders in the defence. I honestly think Emery is tired of our club as much as we are tired of him 😂😂😂😂. His mood wasn’t bright today.

    1. The team just isn’t good enough anymore, they can win games but they won’t will titles or probably not make top 4. We are very light in midfield with no one with any steel in the tackle. Also this ref is useless

  30. Well, that was a very Arsenal like 45 mins.. Ceballos and Pepe actually quite poor so far. Once again, Emery’s tactical setup is defend first and then attack! Not one shot on target!~*

  31. That has to go down as the worst first half I have ever seen…bukayo saka has no business in this first eleven he should with be playing in u21 or loaned out..I can’t even defend mustafi anymore and oh what does Niles do to still be in this team..Pepe has been awful… pathetic first half

  33. Ceballos is an average squad player, in summer i will only offer money around 20m ,otherwise please send him back to real madrid

    1. @pat
      I agree I think Emery has had enough of life with the press in the uk as much as hes ded up with arsenal

      He reads the papers its bound to get to him.
      Mutually agree to separate I say.
      Get a lesson from Leicester at the weekend and hell be in trouble.

  35. Just watched the new vid of the attempted robbery. Kolasinac really stands his ground while the attacker pokes a blade at him.

  36. Is the game that poor?😂😂
    Oh boy when will this end?
    Europa league even though I’m free right now? Nah, I’m sticking to God of War😂😂

  37. Why dont we play our best team in these games, and before the anyone says the players need a rest I’m telling you they bloody dont. Most people work 6 days/50hours a week for a pittance and like me still play at the weekends, these blokes will play tonight and get jetted home tonight or stay in a fancy 5 star hotel and wont lift a finger until Friday so play your best team and bring on the youngsters when the game is won. I know I’m going to get slated but come on chaps this isn’t the arsenal we all love it is shocking

  38. I won’t say the players are terrible. A student can only be as good as his teacher. It was only a matter of time before the coach’s confusion began affecting everyone.
    This is it!

  39. From the line up, it is all confusing and tells who won’t start against leicester. Bellerin will obviously get to his RB, Chambers as CB paired with Luiz then. Torreira Gendouzi Ozil Xhaka.

    It is a good team but not right as our CBs are not top CBs, Chambers is good so does holding but not top, a Koulibaly is what I mean, then that center defense zone is safe and no need to have 4 midfield defending as we do even today.

    The idiotic Emery just can’t get it right and everyone can tell the team he will play as of today against Leicester!

    As long as we do not have Chambers infront of CBs as a DM, we will struggle deneding all game. Ozil or strickers become useless with no ball. Look how low Ceballos has to go to get a ball, he should be getting it in middle and lounge attacks, but in the end, he will be pointed as average. He is a great talent but can’t play his game while defending.

  44. Our coach looked like a hooded Benedictine monk, chanting prayers for the best part of 80mins. I feel sad for him.

    1. How we ever got a draw is beyond me. It was dreadful, A minute to go and playing out from the back seems to me to be suicide and it was. They were the better team. I can only hope we play better at Leicester.

  47. If Arsenal is leading u & the referee blows the final whistle, DON’T LOSE HOPE
    U can still equalize them – one way or the other
    We are so bad it’s comical

  48. This time also won tactically. A lone shot on goal which went into the net. Unlucky Victoria really deserved a win…

  49. Emery has to go…wtf tactics? 5 mins to go and we drop points again? I know this game was irrelevant didn’t mean a thing but a good manager would want a convincing game to rid the really shite and poisonous atmosphere permeating through the club at the moment.

  50. We just cannot hold a lead. Hold on for 4 minutes only? The defensive joke continues.. Amateurs and pretenders managed by a muppet!

  51. So what bad can getting Arteta on board bring

    Shipping out time for Unai

    A successful Arsenal manager only needs to sort defending

    (not defence, defending is our problem, not defence)

  52. Our midfielders are too predictable and too slow in their movement, ( once our team play was beautiful nowadays its laughable)

  54. Haha. What a team pick, tactic subs, amazing Emery. Gendouzi Torreira come to defend some more while we at 0-0! We did keep the draw and not conceid 2 more. Amazing coaching stuff!

    Watch wat he has to say after game! “We were solid, sad to no keep cleans sheet but we got one point and will finish first! ” . We want to focus on net game, rest.

  55. Sorry, ” we got a good point”, played well, solid.”

    Haha, oh yeah, Leceister on the way! But no matter what, Emery will be with us till end of season my friends.

    Kroenke said it, we will win in future, target is CL!

    In other words, he is accurate, we are out of top4 race already, fighting for CL in Europa we fight for in EPL, 5th or 6th place.

    Emery will keep us going in Europa 16th, and 8th, looking at team we can draft next stage. But not sure we will make it to quarter final with CL teams 3rd places adding up. It won’t be as easy and man U has it on target as well,

    So, we will have Emery all the way til March 8th finals of Europa. He will have us hope to get finish for inning when others lose but it will be same ending, just worst…

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