Pick your Arsenal team to face Blackpool – Here’s mine…

The games are coming thick and fast for Arsenal at the moment and Unai Emery will definitely have one eye on this weekend’s crucial visit of Liverpool to the Emirates, but the Spaniard seems determined to put out a strong team for every single game, no matter how easy the opposition looks.

I am feeling pretty sure that this will be Petr Cech’s comeback game although he is not expected to have too much to do. There are bound to be a few youngsters in the side with our defence getting all the injuries, but we can only hope that Monreal and Kolasinac are available. Their ‘minor’ injuries seem to be taking a while to shake off. Sokratis should be a certain starter as should the youngster Smith-Rowe. I would also like to see Zech Medley, Eddie Nketiah and Joe Willock given a run out again. Mustafi probably needs a confidence boost and should play. I think Ozil and Lacazette will both be rested. I am sure there will be a very strong bench as usual just in case things start going wrong…

So here is my predicted line-up..

Cech
Lichtsteiner.. Mustafi.. Sokratis.. Medley
Elneny.. Ramsey.. Mhkitaryan
Smith-Rowe.. Aubameyang.. Welbeck

Should that be enough to deal with Blackpool tomorrow night? Who would you like to see playing?

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39 Comments

  1. We almost agree

    ………………………Cech
    Lichtsteiner . Mustafi . Sokratis . Medley
    …………….Ramsey ……. Elneny
    Smith-Rowe ……….Ozil …………Welbeck
    ………………….Aubameyang

  2. Is bellerin injured?i think we will need him against Liverpool,he’s been very good offensively this season and we will need he’s offensive play against Liverpool

      1. … and out of 10 what is his chance of keeping Mane quiet? And NO! you are not allowed to give a minus number:)

          1. Yes Bellerin on the right wing could work. Let’s hope AMN is back and takes up one of the 2 full back positions. Don’t know if Monreal is fit. Or your dream man Kolasinac :).

            1. Kolasinac is always fit ??
              Would be good to see AMN play tomorrow… not sure if Monreal is fit… sure could do with him on Saturday….

            2. I think people are being a little unfair on Bellerin, for me he is the leagues most in form full back this season. Looking at him up til now, I can totally see why European giants would be of interest. Leic game, he was one of our better defenders, and going forward he was immense. His heading ability has also improved under Emery, and he looks braver. He is a crucial cog to this system we’re playing.

              1. I agree BOT, I think people are a bit too harsh on Bellerin, I feel he has massively improved on last season already and considering he is still so young then we can hope for the right improvement in his def play.

                I thought he looked good defensively against CP.

        1. Isn’t the best way of keeping players like Mane quiet is to pin them back?
          Not let them run at you?

          Bellerin will be causing problems and if the right sided forward can work well with Bellerin to be efficient in the attack then Mane could be forced to defend more than attack.

  3. So just how good are Liverpool?Drew at Chelsea.Drew at home to City who missed a last minute penalty.So that tells me they compete but are certainly no better than these sides.They have improved defensively but do not seem to be as free-flowing going forward as they were last season.
    We have a Manager this season who is not adverse to changing the line-up and tactics.This at least will highlight how less predictable we were under Wenger (sorry Ken1945 but there is simply no argument to this in my mind).
    I am convinced we are a more confident team than we were last season.Our Back Line is a concern and it would not surprise me if we play with a back 3/5 for this game at least to begin with.The more open the game the more I’m convinced it will suit us more than Liverpool.We have better midfield players than them and attacking wise are at least equal.We need to put a performance together in the first 45 minutes and not just expect to wake up for the second half.
    City are streets ahead of us.Liverpool are not.We can beat this side if we DEFEND like a top side should and play for 90 minutes and not just the second half

    1. Hope you’re right Phil but I don’t really see it that way. Just think of the nightmare scenario if we have Xhaka at left back again!! Salah would score 5 by himself! And I don’t see Bellerin stopping Mane either. And when they cut in then our CBs are going to have to perform much better than their usual pantomime performances. Then there’s Firmino of course.
      I don’t think any of our attackers are as good as those. Nope, not even Aubameyang (one of my favourite players), and Lacazette (another fav) who will have have to improve dramatically from his hopeless performance vs Palace.
      As for midfield only Torreira strikes me as being up to the mark at the moment. Even Guendouzi (another fav of mine) needs to seriously up his game from last time. His main problem is that he thinks he has a lot more time than he really has and gets caught on the ball far too often. And let’s not expect too much from Ozil and Ramsey.
      Anyway let’s hope we got all the rubbish out of our system against Palace and at least put on a good show. Again, I hope you’re right but I won’t be having a bet on this game. I couldn’t have a bet on Arsenal the way they played against Palace and of course I refuse to back against them.

      1. On a betting point only, I respectfully suggest that as you stated you cannot bet against Arsenal , you should not bet at all, if you want to win money. As a professional bettor I always separate head from heart and only those who can and do bet this way should EVER bet. Unless they have more money than sense. The bookies make huge money from folk who abandon their heads when betting on their own team, whoever those teams are. If you understand what laying means, you can also profit hugely from this silliness.

        1. I would never bet against Arsenal, never have, never would. The winnings if gained, would give me no satisfaction. Odds in football is generally s**t, if betting on one game it is pure s**t. You need to add scorers, plus a choice of numerous other things if you want a big win. If you’re picking a certain number of teams, you are better off leaving the bigger clubs out of it unless they’re playing each other, or if they have a tough away game. You can still use your knowledge of Arsenal even if you wont bet against them, and have more options to bet on than just betting against your team. These are my feeling on the matter, of course, no-one needs to be told about betting. We all have our preferences and I’m sure none of us are professional gamblers, not if we’re talking about match betting.

          1. You have your own ideas so good luck. But as I am a professional bettor, unlike the “none ” you claim are pros, I DO know what I am talking about. I don’t mind you losing your money in the slightest though I WAS TRYING TO HELP YOU, even though you choose not to believe it, sadly. I do not touch match betting either, it is a guaranteed win for the bookies. RARELY DO ANY OF MY BETS REACH A CONCLUSION BEFORE I TAKE A GUARANTEED PROFIT , FROM BACKING BUT ALSO LAYING THE SAME BET.

    1. I’m glad the club pulled out of the contract negotiations. He had one good season and then did not develop at all

      1. Who else agrees with me that on Ramsey and his limited ability at top level, the wider football world of NON ARSENAL folk, including pundits on TV, are in a large majority who wrongly rate Ramsey? We Gooners who have watched him regularly over his decade long Arsenal time have, generally, little regard for his ability at top level. I say we are RIGHT and those outside Arsenal are hugely mistaken. Just goes to show how vital real knowledge is in making correct decisions. SAME GOES FOR OTHER CLUBS PLAYERS TOO. The regular fans know best, by far. THERE IS NO SUBSTITUTE FOR INTENSE, IN DEPTH, STUDY. Opinions hastily formed on one or two performances can be and often are hugely deceptive. Many Gooners rated Mustafi after his first 4-5 games but we know better now.

        1. Jon-Ot is no coincidence that Santi Cazorla made players look far far better than what they actually were.So too did a fit and injury free Thomas Rosicky.Ramsey enjoyed one good ( no more than that ) season in 2013-14 and that was the time our mercurial Spaniard was at his peak.FFS he even made Coqulien seem decent.When Santiago was injured where was Ramsey to step up and be the midfield General he purports to be?Nowhere.
          Over-Hyped during Euro 2016 he fell into that trap of believing his own publicity.Over-Rated by the previous Manager who continually played him whenever he was fit.
          Let him find out for himself how Wenger fed his inflated ego by allowing him to believe he was better than he actually was.He should have signed in the summer or demanded to go.I do not blame Emery for believing he was one of our better players and admire him more for realising his mistake.
          Ramsey is NOT good enough as AMN and Guendouzi will prove over the next few seasons and Torreira is proving now

          1. Phil, you say he should have signed in the summer, I was pleased he didn’t. Let Chelsea and United have a bidding war for him in January, however, I don’t think Ramsey will budge, He knows he’ll get a better deal if he joins his next club on a free transfer. To me this has always been his plan. I’d stick him in the reserves and let him to train with the youth team until we get rid of him.

            1. I agree with you Kenny.I don’t care about Ramsey going at all.If he wanted to sign he should have signed in the summer.He and his advisors felt by going past the August transfer deadline they would be in a better position.Well they are not.Ramsey will not be a first choice at Man Utd Chelsea or Liverpool.He would not be a first choice at Arsenal.He left it too late to have his demands met and his performances this season have proved his is average at best.

          2. Agree every word apart from his good half season, not season, before he got injured once again. Just that Aug-to Dec 2013-14 season. Nothing much since.

    2. Last season he was pretty poor, and in a way he’s been quite clever, at £90k a week he’s not pricing himself out of a transfer should an offer come in for him. If he’d demanded £150k pw or more, fewer, if any clubs would be interested.

  4. Elneny is apparently injured but AMN is fit and should play alongside Ramsay and Guendouzi in midfield.When he becomes match fit I hope AMN gets an extended run in the side as he would add athleticism to the midfield and would work well with Torreria..

    1. Totally agree about AMN getting an extended run in the side but maybe on this occasion he will be more use to us in one of the full back positions against Liverpool. Somebody’s got to keep up with Mane/Salah!

      1. Was thinking about the liverpool 3forwards… What about this line up
        ………………….leno………………..
        Liches……. Holding…. Sok…. Moneral
        Bellerin…. Terrer…… Xakai…. Kolas
        ……………..auba…. Lacca……………..

        1. Not one proper forward creator like Ozil or Myki? You have eight outfield defenders or defensive midfielders in your eleven, if you count Bellerin as a defender, which I do NOT, so what about the crucial attack/ defence balance we need? Not remotely there in your eleven! Seems to me you were ONLY thinking about the Liverpool forwards and of NOTHING else! Did you invent the phrase park the bus! If so , you must be Mourinho.

          1. I dont class bellerin or kolas defenders. They are better going forward than defending. This liverpool forwards will score against any team let alone us. I think this is the best team to stop them. I surley wouldnt want that team play every week just against city and Liverpool you dont know much about football…

            1. After 60 years attending Arsenal games, I know a lot more than you. As you are a newbie on here you obviously don’t know my years as a fan. You do now. And you are still wrong as their must ALWAYS be a balance in any team. Eleven out and out defenders would be as useless as your selection in preventing goals. Part of defending is having possession and you don’t do that if you pack the team wirh 8 defenders.

                1. Older guys, like me, don’t generally need to smoke dope. We leave that to younger, more immature folk who lack the knowledge of how much harm it does. Arsenal is my drug, I don’t need narcotics and would not have mentioned it had you not accused me of taking it.

  5. Elneny is injured for two weeks.. Bellerin is out of d Blackpool game.
    ..
    Also i feel its time we started a reliable back up to Torreira ,as he is presently d only Arsenal starter without a good enough backup/rotation option.
    Niles should be used in DM today IMO.

    Lacazette has been a bit short on confidence in d past two games.. he needs minutes more than Aubameyang (who should start upfront against Liverpool).

    ……………………Cech
    Lichsteiner,Sokratis,Mustafi,Kolasinac
    …………..Ramsey,Niles,Guendouzi
    ……………………Mkhitaryan
    …………Lacazette…..Welbeck

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