🍢 🧚‍♂️ ODEGAARD INJURED, RICE OUT ARSENAL SWEATS

Hello all,

It's no longer news that the mercurial Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard is out injured in the ankle area, so won't be available for some weeks.

https://youtube.com/shorts/X2CgFZ1hXAo?si=1eRh91f4hJYGqfy1
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He's the industrious, hardworking player on the pitch, elegant in style, skilful, full of running, so much intelligence and a leader on the pitch indeed. I love Smith-Rowe, and I still closely monitor him at Fulham, and how I wanted him to be given more game time, but whenever I looked at Odegaard even my heart that loves Rowe will need to conclude that the guy keeping Rowe on the bench is something else.🙂

Odegaard is too good that he alone has accounted for the exit of Smithe-Rowe and Vieira(though on loan). Herein lies the sweat in most of Arsenal’s fan base– they are complaining of why players were shifted away when it is a possibility that the captain can be injured. Ofcourse they know that Odegaard's replacement right now is a teenager by name, Nwaneri, and they are not comfortable with him against a rampaging Spurs side.

WHAT TO DO?

A good number of fans are opting for the "safe" option of a Partey and Jorginho pivot. One of them said—

"Arteta will 90% use double pivot

Partey and timber

Or partey and jorg

Harvert playing in the midfield

Either matt, trossard or Jesus will strike"

I'm always uncomfortable seeing Harvetz in midfield and Jorginho is leggy now. This double pivot thing is, it really the Arsenal way? Have we run out of options?

Then I listened to the video below which brought up something similar to my thinking and even the head of Arsenal’s fan club, Mr. Robbie, didn't quite jive with it.

https://youtube.com/shorts/BMi9ArrLuK4?si=FZ0DApV0iliQRDCP
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Harvetz in midfield is risky against a pacy Tottenham, but if there's one player right now that will cover for him, it is Saka. That's the sense of pairing them together.

Like the man rightly points out, Arsenal's play isn't that rigid, so Saka can COMFORTABLY play in the middle. Secondly it's a Sterling that could come in to occupy that right wing. Sterling is just a bundle of problem to any defence, so it's not like we would miss Saka much plus with Sterling's high intelligence he can drift into midfield and Saka drifts wide as situation demands.

Well Saka was away of national duty, Sterling and Trossard were home. I therefore wouldn't want Saka to be bugged with the extra work of pairing Harvetz in midfield

NOW TO MY PREFERENCE

So I would go with a Trossard combo with Timber in midfield instead. People talk of Zini. This is a must win match, Zini is great with the ball, but against Tottenham we crucially need a robustness without the ball, which Timber brings to the table. So Timber-Trossard for me in midfield.

I am assuming Calafiori is fit because he's the one that should mount that ILB role.

Saka remains, Sterling could start on the left.

Bring on Tottenham.

THIS IS ARSENAL