What side could Arsenal have put out for the North London Derby if it went ahead?
What side could Arsenal have put out for the North London Derby if it went ahead?
By Tom Masters
Arsenal were due to be finalising their preparations ahead of an important north London derby at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, but despite playing a Carabao Cup semi-final against Liverpool on Thursday evening, their request for the game to be postponed was granted by the Premier League.
The match against Liverpool finished 0-0, with Granit Xhaka getting sent off for a clumsy challenge and Cedric Soares being replaced early on with an injury.
However, Arsenal felt they did not have the squad available to take on Spurs in such an important match and submitted a request for it to be postponed, with Martin Odegaard testing positive for Covid.
But could Arsenal have played the game? We have a look at the players available for the Gunners and a possible XI Mikel Arteta could have selected.
Goalkeeper: Aaron Ramsdale
Absolutely no problem between the sticks for the Gunners as both Ramsdale and Bernd Leno are both fit.
Ramsdale has been one of the signings of the season so far and would certainly have started if the game went ahead.
Left back: Kieran Tierney
Another area with no issues for Arteta with both Tierney and Nuno Tavares fit and able to play.
Should the game have been played, it would have been Tierney that Arteta likely opted for, in a season the Scot has been very impressive.
Centre backs: Ben White and Gabriel
Arsenal’s starting centre-backs are both available after Gabriel served his ban following the red card against Manchester City.
Pablo Mari and Rob Holding are also able to play, so Arteta would have plenty of options to call upon for the clash with Spurs.
Right back: Takehiro Tomiyasu
The first area of difficulty for Arsenal comes at right-back with Tomiyasu not featuring since New Year’s Day with a calf injury and both Cedric and Calum Chambers taking knocks at Anfield in the week.
Rumours are though that the Japanese defender had returned to full fitness and was due to start against Tottenham, meaning Arsenal would have their first-choice defence on the pitch.
Centre midfielders: Albert Sambi Lokonga and Charlie Patino
This is an area of self-inflicted concern for Arsenal, with Xhaka’s latest mishap leaving him suspended.
Thomas Partey and Mohamed Elneny are of course on Africa Cup of Nations duty, and while Odegaard could slot in and play a deeper role, he is Arsenal’s sole Covid casualty.
Lokonga and Patino still represents a quality midfield duo though and would have given Arteta the pivot players he wants.
Attacking midfielders: Bukayo Saka, Emile Smith Rowe and Gabriel Martinelli
With Odegaard out, that leaves Smith Rowe the obvious man to come back into the fold, with the Gunners’ top scorer missing the past two matches due to a minor groin injury.
It was believed that Smith Rowe was due to return this weekend, meaning Arsenal would have a playmaking option available, while Gabriel Martinelli is also fully fit.
Bukayo Saka was forced off during the game against Liverpool and while he was a 50-50 call to be available for the Spurs clash, he wasn't definitively ruled out, meaning the Gunners could more or less have had their starting attacking midfielders on the field.
Nicolas Pépé is on AFCON duty, so should Saka or Smith Rowe not have made it, there may have been problems for the Gunners.
Striker: Alexandre Lacazette
With Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang both unpopular with Arteta and on AFCON duty with Gabon, he is absent, leaving Frenchman Lacazette to take the starting jersey as he has done for much of the last few weeks.
Eddie Nketiah is also fit, meaning there is back-up for Arsenal on the replacements bench.
Overall, this is almost a starting XI for the Gunners, with the exception of the midfield, which also contains a couple of injury doubts and perhaps a weakened bench, which begs the question as to why the match has been postponed, unless there are more injuries or Covid cases than they have initially revealed.