Arsenal vs Aston Villa predicted XI: Ground can be made up

Wingbacks

Speaking of unsure. With Ainsley Maitland-Niles playing left wingback against Manchester City, my perception of what is and isn’t possible at this position flew out the window. And yet it worked out, same as all the other decisions that Arteta made. Go figure.

For this match, though, I feel like we can be pretty confident in what we’re going to see. Cedric Soares should come back in on the right side. He isn’t available to play in the FA Cup since he already featured for Southampton in the competition.

And seeing as how we’re going to have the majority of possession, Bukayo Saka will likely get the nod on the left. He was unfortunately wasted at the role against Liverpool, as he was pinned back in defense for the majority of the match.

Getting him some freedom to break out and attack is long overdue and it will likely be on his plate in this one.

Central midfield up next.