Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta is facing a left-sided quandary for Sunday’s tantalising Premier League fixture with London rivals Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
The Gunners travel across the capital on the back of a brilliant 3-1 Champions League win over Bayern Munich, although the one sour note was the first-half muscular injury to the in-form Leandro Trossard.
Arteta does not expect the Belgium international to be sidelined for long, but his likely absence on Sunday opens up a spot for one of two substitute scorers – Gabriel Martinelli or Noni Madueke – to take.
The latter would no doubt relish the opportunity to strut his stuff against his old employers, but as Martinelli is a more natural left-sided option, the Brazil international should get the nod after recovering from a muscular injury.
Arteta was quintessentially coy on the status of Viktor Gyokeres and Kai Havertz in his pre-match press conference, but Mikel Merino is fit and available to start as an auxiliary striker once more, joining Martinelli and stalwart Bukayo Saka in attack.
Martin Odegaard returned from a knee injury off the bench against Bayern, but North London derby hat-trick hero Eberechi Eze will surely retain his place in the engine room alongside Martin Zubimendi and Declan Rice once more.
Two changes are likely at the back, where Piero Hincapie and Riccardo Calafiori should come in for Cristhian Mosquera and Myles Lewis-Skelly, as Arteta reverts to the rearguard from last weekend’s 4-1 Spurs slaughter.
Arsenal possible starting lineup:
Raya; Timber, Saliba, Hincapie, Calafiori; Eze, Zubimendi, Rice; Saka, Merino, Martinelli