Arsenal Vs Newcastle United: So who’s going to play?

Mesut Ozil and Sead Kolasinac will not travel to Newcastle United due to safety concerns. With several unprepared players, who will actually start for Arsenal on Sunday afternoon?

Arsenal open their Premier League account on Sunday afternoon against Newcastle United. After a wonderful summer transfer window injected an air of positivity into the club, there is a growing level of excitement and expectation for the coming year.

Find the latest episode of the Pain in the Arsenal Podcast here — The 2019/20 Season Preview

However, for the first match of the year, Unai Emery’s options are a little limited. With several players not arriving late to the club after international competitions and some of the signings not being made until the closing days of the window, there are plenty of positions that are lacking a little.

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And then on Thursday afternoon, shocking news revealed that Mesut Ozil and Sead Kolasinac would not travel with the squad amid concerns for their respective safeties. In a club statement, Arsenal said:

"“Mesut Özil and Sead Kolasinac will not be part of the squad for our opening match against Newcastle following further security incidents which are being investigated by the police. The welfare of our players and their families is always a top priority and we have taken this decision following discussion with the players and their representatives. We are liaising with the police and are providing the players and their families with ongoing support. We look forward to welcoming the players back to the squad as soon as possible. We will not be making any further comment on the matter.”"

Obviously, the safety of the players is paramount and I do hope that everything can be sorted swiftly. However, from a purely footballing perspective, their abence leaves the team in a spot of bother.

At left-back, Kieran Tierney is unlikely to be ready, so Nacho Monreal will have to start. Meanwhile, in the attacking midfield positions, Alex Iwobi is no longer at the club, Nicolas Pepe has not featured throughout the pre-seasons, while Dani Ceballos has also only been played sparingly. Add in the fact that Lucas Torreira and Matteo Guendouzi returned late to the team in central midfield, and the options are thin on the ground.

Finally, Alexandre Lacazette has been dealing with an ankle injury and is unlikely to feature for the full 90 minutes, meaning that Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang will start on his own up front, potentially with Henrikh Mkhitaryan or even Joe Willock in behind him. It is not the most convincing line-up, to say the least.

How Emery assembles his XI for the season opener remains to be seen. But the options are limited, no matter how exciting the rest of the campaign may be.