Arsenal: 3 things to look out for vs Nottingham Forest

The FA Cup kicks off for Premier League sides up and down the country with Arsenal traveling to the City Ground on Sunday to take on Nottingham Forest in the third round.

We’re quite fond of this competition, aren’t we? It’s been the source of unrivalled success for the red half of north London with no side bettering the Gunners’ total of 14 FA Cup titles.

When Arsenal beat Chelsea 2-1 in the 2020 final Mikel Arteta became the first person in history to lift the trophy both as a captain and as a manager. The team he takes north on Sunday will look nothing like that winning side.

Transfer season is afoot and Arteta made no bones about his side’s need to dip into the transfer market. Depleted numbers in key areas as a result of loan departures, AFCON involvement and a mixture of Covid and injury related absences should make for an exciting (worrying?) lineup.

Nottingham Forest vs Arsenal: 3 things to look out for in Sunday’s FA Cup third round tie for Mikel Arteta’s side

There is no reason for Arsenal not to go for the FA Cup this season. With no European football clogging up the fixture list and the Carabao Cup only a maximum of three more matches, another piece of silverware in the cabinet and qualification for the Europa League wouldn’t go amiss.

It is all about the Premier League though, right? Arsenal have their best chance in a while of securing a top four berth and the riches that come with it, but the club aren’t in league action for a week when they face Tottenham so full focus is on the City Ground.

Forest have improved immensely since Steve Cooper took over, going from relegation candidates to play-off contenders with a run of just three defeats in his 17 matches in charge. They won’t be easy opposition, that is for sure.

And this is a magical competition, one to really get your teeth sunk into. There is nothing like it. As Arteta takes his ‘very short’ side to the River Trent, there are three things to look out for from the Gunners.

1. Rhythm in the Team Despite Changes

As Arteta would say, Arsenal are in a ‘good moment’. The team is playing some flowing attacking football at last and performances are reaching a level worthy of being in the top four conversation.

Not there yet, the signs have never been more encouraging that they can get there.

Expected to field a different looking side with the back five, for example, all due to change, what is important on Sunday is to see a continuation of the style and approach witnessed from the regular Premier League side.

While wholesale changes will always result in a dip, if the team can apply themselves in the same manner and at least show an understanding of the demands then it offers reassurance that those on the periphery are as invested into the manager’s ideas as their more utilised teammates.

How many of those involved on Sunday will be around come the summer, or perhaps even the winter, is another matter. But it will be interesting to see how unified the squad is tactically, if obviously not at the same level in terms of quality.

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2. Using the Five Substitutes With Academy Chances Given

It’s highly likely that Charlie Patino will feature against Nottingham Forest, quite possibly from the start, but there could also be a host of other exciting young talents set for involvement based on Friday’s events.

The Under-23 side drew 1-1 away at Brighton on Friday with a squad missing a host of its usual crop. There was no Kido Taylor-Hart, Tim Akinola, Patino or Salah Oulad M’Hand, which effectively confirms the involvement of at least two of them.

Arteta’s squad is vanishing before his very eyes and of all the young stars set to profit from that, Patino stands out must. But that is doing him an injustice. Even with more players available, the 18-year-old stood a very strong chance of involvement.

He’s not alone either, and the hope is that one or two more senior debuts could be handed out this Sunday. It would help, of course, if the game state is positive going into the second half to boost their chances, but with the squad paper thin as it is and there being five substitutes to use in the match there is no reason not to see some new faces in the senior set up.

Benches are also able to hold nine players. 3-0 half-time lead and a flurry of youngsters? Why not.

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3. Sambi Lokonga Back in the Arsenal Team

Situations change so quickly in football. One moment you are creating six chances against Newcastle, pinging passes left, right and centre and scooping the man of the match award, and the next moment you’ve played just nine minutes of football in seven Premier League matches.

Sunday will see the return of one Sambi Lokonga.

The team he’s coming into is very different to the one he last featured in. While only a few weeks apart, the improvement in attacking fluency has sky-rocketed across recent performances, and bringing Sambi back into the fold isn’t expected to see that drop.

The Belgian midfielder looked like a player who was truly enjoying himself in red and white. Changes at Old Trafford and Granit Xhaka’s return from injury put a stop in his involvement, which while for the benefit of the team made sense, was unfortunate for him.

But he’s still only 22 years old and this is his first ever Premier League season. Just like absences paved the way for him at the beginning of the season, they will once again here and amid all the talk of exciting young players, fans are just as excited to see Sambi back on the pitch.

He’s a superb talent that will be a mainstay in this team for many years to come.