A rare enough thing will be taking place this weekend…Arsenal will be appearing in an actual Premier League fixture.
It feels like an age since it last happened, as if the defeat at Old Trafford was some half-forgotten memory from last season. Though it was only a fortnight ago, the wider events that have overtaken football, as well as our lack of European competition, have made it feel like a huge expanse of time.
In some respects, that time off has been good for Mikel Arteta and his squad. We were carrying a few injuries and fitness worries in the early part of this month so the opportunity to rest some tired legs, and return others to fitness, was not to be scoffed at.
It will also have served to take some of the focus and pressure away from our early-season exploits, which have propelled us to the top of the league table. It is, of course, absurd to be talking about a title challenge at this juncture but a chance to turn down the heat on the pressure cooker and direct the football public’s gaze elsewhere will have been good.
On Sunday, we’ll be making the short trip to Brentford whose own start to the season has been characteristically solid. They are one of those canny, adaptable sort of sides who can maximise the small margins to achieve good results and we need look no further than the opening fixture of last season to see what they are capable of.
That defeat was particularly painful for Arteta’s men and will doubtless have stuck in the craw as we were humiliated in front of the TV cameras. I expect a different level of performance this time around.
Brentford are no fools, mind you. If they get things right, they are more than capable of making us look silly again so coming away from there with some points will be difficult. Unlike last season, though, I expect an energised Arsenal side to seek to really impose itself, rather than being dictated to and, frankly, bullied.
In terms of personnel, it will be interesting to see if Thomas Partey is fit and available for selection. There are reports that the Ghana international has returned to full training following a spell on the sidelines but, given his lamentable injury record, it is always a risk to rush him back.
Sambi Lokonga has deputised admirably in Partey’s stead but, with the best will in the world, he is not a player as capable of doing the sorts of things that Partey does. It is an area of the pitch I would expect Brentford to focus on if the Ghanaian is unavailable and it will be an area Arteta will have to think carefully on if changes are required.
Elsewhere, we look to be in pretty good shape but we won’t really know until the teamsheet is released on Sunday. Arteta has become increasingly cagey with his squad updates this season it’s extremely difficult to get a read on who may or may not be available.
If we do have a full squad fit and firing, we can be confident, I think, of a good performance. That may not necessarily equate to all three points but I think our chances are good as long as we avoid the sort of complacency I frequently harp on about.
With a huge glut of fixtures to come in October, a lot of careful squad management will be required but if we can launch into the period of the back of a good win and a better performance, we’ll be in good shape for the busy winter period.
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