Kicking off our Europa League campaign in Switzerland tonight (Thursday) is about setting the tone.
Unlike our previous run-outs in the competition, this season’s Europa League will prove more of a test and a step-up in class from our clashes with semi-professional sides scattered across far-flung outposts of continental football.
That’s not to say we should be risking it all for the three points here. We can afford to rest a few of those who might be expected to start against Everton on Sunday but what we can’t afford is to take things too lightly.
The experiences of both Chelsea and Liverpool in their respective European campaigns this week should serve as ample warning that shocks can and will happen if you’re out of form and not at 100 per cent.
The Champions League is a different calibre of competition, of course, but the threat remains the same from any opponent looking to claim a Premier League scalp.
If nothing else, FC Zurich will be motivated and well-prepared for what is sure to be a big date in their diary. Asserting control early will be vital.
That said, I think we can expect some manner of rotation from Mikel Arteta, albeit tempered by the ongoing injury issues we are facing. Emile Smith Rowe, Cedric Soares and Mohammed Elneny would doubtless have been lined up for some minutes in this competition but injuries to all three mean adjustments will need to be made and players who might otherwise have been looking at a rest might have to do a job.
It would be nice to see some of our younger talent offered a chance tonight but quite how much Arteta is prepared to gamble remains to be seen. My guess would be ‘not a lot’. Game state may dictate much of what we do.
I think we can be confident of seeing Matt Turner, Kieran Tierney, Rob Holding and Takehiro Tomiyasu from the outset, and I would expect Fabio Vieira to take a place in midfield. Sambi Lokonga will continue in the number six role, I would wager, with a possible first run-out for Marquinhos in place of Bukayo Saka.
Up top, it feels almost certain that Eddie Nketiah will be given a start while Gabriel Jesus takes a place on the bench ahead of the weekend.
As for the likes of midfielder Matt Smith and defender Ruell Walters, however, I think this fixture may come too soon for them.
That said, the entire squad is well-drilled in the sort of football that Arteta likes to play so I don’t expect much by way of drop-off in the level of performance. We should have more than enough for Zurich, whose own league campaign has started with back-to-back defeats against Basel and Lugano.
Bad form or otherwise, though, Arsenal need to take their opponents seriously and ensure they get a professional, fuss-free job done. If we can do that without any more injuries or aggravations to the players, so much the better.
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