Arsenal vs Newcastle: 5 things to watch for in season opener

Arsenal’s season opener is just around the corner as we are set to take on Newcastle. Here are five things to watch for in this one.

It’s here! I literally can’t believe it, but the start of the season is here, all the annoying preseason matches are out of the way and Arsenal are ready to take on Newcastle at St. Mary’s. Which is never an easy task given the stadium, but we can only hope that with the massive attacking abilities of this club and the tumult that Newcastle’s managerial situation went through, maybe we can count on an opening three points.

Unlike last season.

Of course, there are major questions to be asked about this one, and questions we will be hoping to move towards answering, even this early in this season. And as such, there are plenty of things to watch for.

I’ve managed to condense an expansive list down to five key things, so let’s dig right in, starting with No. 5.

5. Life without Alexandre Lacazette?

It’s looking more and more likely that our Player of the Season, Alexandre Lacazette, will be missing for the opener. Which is just our luck. Lacazette proved yet again how crucial he was during the preseason, and how versatile as well.

As if we needed any further reminder.

While Unai Emery sounded optimistic at first, he’s now being reported as a “doubt,” meaning that we’d best be prepared for life without him in this one.

Thankfully, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has been razor sharp this summer, and we should have complete confidence giving him sole striker responsibilities, even if it’s therefore unclear what we’re going to do with the attack around him.

At the end of the day, it’s better to play this safe. Rather have Lacazette completely healthy for the majority of the season than risk aggravating something for the sole benefit of having him in the opener. There are far too many matches ahead to have him risking everything in this one.

Moving on to No. 4.