Arsenal vs AFC Wimbledon: 4 things we’d like to see

AFC Wimbledon are next up on the fixture list for Arsenal as they host the League One outfit at the Emirates Stadium on Wednesday for their third round tie. Here is what we’d like to see in the game.

Everyone expects this to be a walkover. You can’t really blame them. In the 92 matches that Mikel Arteta has managed Arsenal he has never faced a side as low down the English football pyramid as the Dons.

Currently sitting in seventh place in League One, the next lowest ranked team was Portsmouth in March 2020 who were third at the time of the FA Cup fifth round clash. The visitors are likely to bring a strong following up from south London but the odds are still heavily in the Gunners’ favour.

Understandably, much of the attention is directed towards the weekend. The small matter of a North London Derby is to come as Spurs travel to the Emirates for a fixture that could bring the teams to level pegging in the Premier League table.

Arsenal vs AFC Wimbledon: 4 things we’d like to see from Mikel Arteta and his side for Wednesday’s EFL Cup third round clash

It’s a huge game for both sides. Focus should, however, be on Wednesday.

Much of the talk during the build-up has been around which young players should be given a chance, and indeed whether Arteta will opt to head down that route having previously gone quite strong in domestic cup competitions during his reign.

Arguably, his ‘weakest’ side was the aforementioned FA Cup tie with Portsmouth, so it’s expected we’ll see some new faces in midweek for some exciting debuts.

Elsewhere in the game there are a few other points to look at as Arsenal bid for a win that will take them one step closer to lifting a trophy they haven’t held aloft for over 28 years, when Steve Morrow’s goal handed Arsenal a 2-1 win over Sheffield Wednesday at Wembley.

The good ol’ times.

1. Goals, Goals, Goals

After the start to the season that Arsenal had, back-to-back 1-0 wins would have been welcomed with open arms. Even if those came against two sides who could be dicing with relegation this season, just getting the winning feeling back and showing some defensive solidity was a breath of fresh air.

Smashing West Brom 6-0 in the second round was one of the more enjoyable days in recent times. Regardless of the quality of opposition, wins of that margin are hard to come by.

Without getting too carried away, a couple more goals than one would be welcome against AFC Wimbledon. Arsenal should be beating their League One opponents. It’d be nice to do so with some front-footed vigour and penetration.

Despite the team that is fielded on Wednesday set to be nothing like the one that will host Tottenham, loading the scoreline up with three or four goals will maintain the feel-good atmosphere that is building up around the club.

The form books tends to go out of the window on derby day and beating third division sides on home soil doesn’t have a great degree of impact on the team, nor does it tell us all too much, but it’s better than a poke in the eye.

Hopefully whatever team is put out can play with some freedom, get some early goals and take any senior players who start off nice and early for a rest.

No team has been involved in more goals in League One this season than Wimbledon…

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2. Further Evidence That There is Life Without Granit Xhaka

First of all, the caveat: AFC Wimbledon are in League One and precious little that happens on Wednesday will indicate to Arteta that Granit Xhaka is no longer an essential cog in his Arsenal team.

But what if he’s already seen that light?

Opting for a shape most closely resembling a 4-1-4-1 against Burnley and later bringing on two central midfielders in Albert Sambi Lokonga and Ainsley Maitland-Niles, Arteta has to begin seeing what this team is capable of without the Swiss.

Under normal circumstances, Xhaka would have been a shoo-in for that game as he is the physical and vocal presence that the narrative would suggest is essential heading to Turf Moor. Sambi and Maitland-Niles came on and were superb, winning every loose ball, covering every blade of grass and adding the bite and carrying ability to ease the pressure on Arsenal.

Wimbledon is set to be an easier task, no doubt. The same two are likely to start and if there is further evidence of steel in midfield coupled with more adventurous variety in how they attack then if there was a seed planted in Arteta’s mind it might just have grown its first leaf. But only one leaf. This is the EFL Cup against a third division side.

Is Xhaka going to start the North London Derby? It feels inevitable and, in all honesty, he’ll probably have a brilliant game.

But if there are any minor selection arguments Arteta has going on internally then another solid 90 minutes from a midfield presenting a new dynamism may just tip the scale. It’s unlikely, but this is about what could come further down the line. A vision for the future is growing.

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3. More Improvement From Ainsley Maitland-Niles

Maitland-Niles’ 15 (+4) minute spell against Burnley was genuinely surprising. For someone who was desperate to leave before the deadline day, a cameo such as that wasn’t expected. To his absolute credit, he was superb.

He got to every ball first, blocked lanes, slowed the pace down when he needed to and ran his socks off. That was not the performance of someone who wasn’t committed. Whether he’s vying for another contract at Arsenal or elsewhere, that level of professionalism is welcome.

Is he capable of being a 90-minute Arsenal midfielder? The jury is still out. There are still inconsistencies with his distribution, and his calmness, which can be a blessing, can also be his downfall: he’s almost too cool on the ball at times.

But what he has to do is prove that he has value in this team. Whether that is filling in for injuries or offering something different off the bench, the standard he reached at Turf Moor is one he needs to maintain.

AFC Wimbledon won’t be his biggest test, nor will a strong display against them determine whether he should be moving up the pecking order. What this fixture can be is one where he shows he still has his head screwed on. Some momentum from Maitland-Niles that proves Burnley wasn’t a one-off is what Arteta will be after.

An improvement in his hit-and-miss passing is also going to be observed, as it looks for all the world as if he and Sambi will partner up in the centre once more.

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4. All Three Substitutions Taken Advantage of

With EFL Cup matches outside of semi-finals and finals going straight to penalties, getting these ties wrapped up nice and early is preferable to avoid the potential jeopardy.

There is a huge crop of exciting talent who could be in line for a place on the bench against Wimbledon; whoever of those are the squad are highly unlikely to be starting. For many, just being part of the group in front of the home fans at the Emirates will be a huge experience.

But if Arsenal find themselves three goals to the good after 60 minutes (touch wood) then Arteta’s three substitutions have the potential to be all used up on youngsters.

It’s important to find a balance and not risk thrusting them all in at once. Yet even if it’s just five minutes at the end if some of those set to feature against Spurs can make way for a couple of debuts for Under-23 stars that would cap off a perfect evening.

So much will depend on how the match pans out and what game state these talents are entering. Hope is that it’s a pleasant one which allows the rising stars to express themselves in the freest way possible.

They’ll never get a better chance all season long, unless the FA Cup draw is kind in the early rounds.