Arsenal predicted lineup vs West Ham: Martinelli to start?

Arsenal travel to the London Stadium on Sunday hoping to keep their (very) faint hopes of securing a European berth from the Premier League alive when they take on a West Ham side chasing a top four spot. Here is the Gunners’ predicted lineup.

A full two weeks await for Mikel Arteta as his Arsenal side can take their minds away from a hectic Premier League and Europa League schedule when the international break takes place.

Of course, there will still be key members of his squad trekking across the continents for their respective nations including overused trio Granit Xhaka, Kieran Tierney and Bukayo Saka, but the recuperation time will nonetheless be warmly welcome.

Thus what decisions he makes for this London derby will be interesting. Opting to field an almost full strength side for the midweek clash with Olympiacos barring the absences of Thomas Partey and Martin Odegaard, a shuffle of sorts at the back is expected.

Arsenal predicted lineup vs West Ham: Gabriel Martinelli or Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang for Sunday’s Premier League meeting?

Both full-back options may differ in personnel, as will the centre-back positions, as the Spaniard looks to balance freshness with quality in their final league fixture of the month.

West Ham have been in inspired form under David Moyes having only narrowly avoided relegation last season, and they have everything to play for as they look to usurp Chelsea in fourth place en route to what is already an incredible season, one unlike any seen in the eastern quarter of the capital since the formation of the division.

Up front there is also an intriguing battle for who starts at centre-forward, as Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s dreadful display on Thursday was bettered in just a few short minutes by Gabriel Martinelli’s cameo.

Nicolas Pepe was one of few players from that defeat who could leave feeling they did marginally well, and this ground last season was the sight of one of his better performances for the club since his move.

Decisions, decisions. Here is our predicted lineup.

Goalkeeper & Defenders

Bernd Leno (GK) – The German was visibly upset with his defenders against Olympiacos, and rightfully so. Nobody got tight enough to their man and the sloppiness was horrific at best, none of which will affect Leno’s place in the team. As ever.

Cedric Soares (RB) – Having played so well in the Athens, Hector Bellerin’s display was massively disappointing against Olympiacos. His link-up with Pepe simply does not work; or indeed exist. He was hooked early and that doesn’t look set to be with an eye on Sunday. Cedric will come back in.

Rob Holding (CB) – Out of the team for three Premier League outings, it wouldn’t be surprising to see David Luiz retain his place despite a poor showing in midweek given his attributes on the ball. However, Holding is the best defender Arsenal have in the air, especially for set pieces, which is a key strength of the Hammers.

Gabriel (CB) – While Gabriel was Arsenal’s best performer last time out with exception to Odegaard, Pablo Mari is the obvious choice for this purely based on rotation. That said, while his pace hasn’t been exploited yet, if anyone is to do so then it’s Michail Antonio. Gabriel may get the nod purely for his greater athleticism.

Kieran Tierney (LB) – Decisions further up the pitch make this unfortunately forced. Bellerin’s non-existent link up with Pepe could see Cedric come in, therefore the only option remaining to play left-back is Tierney. Unfortunately, this is the way it is, even if fatigue is clearly setting in.