After an impressive start to the season, Arsenal have struggled in the Premier League in recent weeks, with Mikel Arteta's side failing to win any of their last four Premier League games. A 1-1 draw against Chelsea before the last international break of 2024 meant Arsenal sat fourth in the Premier League table, nine points off the top of the league and three points off 11th.
Next up for the Gunners is a clash against Nottingham Forest, with the Reds the surprise team of the season so far. Nuno Espirito Santo's side are only behind Arsenal on goal difference, while they remain the only side to have beaten Liverpool so far this season. Ben White will be unavailable after undergoing knee surgery, while Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice should both be fit.
We predict that Arsenal could set up in a 4-3-3 formation, with their line-up as follows: Raya; Timber, Saliba, Gabriel, Calafiori; Partey, Odegaard, Rice; Saka, Havertz, Martinelli.
We predict that Liverpool could line up in a 4-2-3-1 formation, with their starting XI as follows: Sels; Aina, Milenkovic, Murillo, Moreno; Yates, Dominguez; Elanga, Gibbs-White, Hudson-Odoi; Wood.
Just four minutes in, Forest took the lead at the Emirates, with Morgan Gibbs-White sneaking in ahead of William Saliba at the front post to prod Alex Moreno's cross through the legs of David Raya. It was less than a convincing start from the hosts, but two goals in quick succession saw Arteta's side turn the game on its head before half-time.
The first goal came in the 28th minute when Saliba made up for his earlier error by heading home a corner from close range. Just six minutes later, Arsenal struck again, this time through Bukayo Saka. Gabriel Martinelli's shot was parried across goal by the 'keeper, and Saka got ahead of the defender to meet the loose ball and fire into an empty net.
Despite sacrificing a lead, Forest continued to look a threat all afternoon, and in the 58th minute, they grabbed a second to make it 2-2 when Chris Wood's shot fired off the post and unluckily into the net off Raya's back. After drawing level, the visitors seemed to take their foot off the gas, and with 11 minutes to go, the Gunners regained the lead through Kai Havertz.
Martin Odegaard looked destined to shoot when the ball fell kindly to him just outside the box, but the midfielder fooled the Forest backline by instead playing a pass out to Havertz on the right. After taking a touch past the defender, the German rifled a shot past the 'keeper at the front post, making it 3-2.
The third goal seemed to knock any remaining belief out of Forest, and in the 89th minute, Havertz grabbed another, this time latching onto Gabriel's long ball to go one-on-one with the 'keeper and curl into the bottom corner from close range. The visitors were unable to come from behind again late on, with Arsenal picking up an important three points.
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