Arsenal vs Brentford Premier League preview: How to watch, lineups, top four & prediction

Arsenal Team News vs Brentford – Will Takehiro Tomiyasu be Fit?

Battling to a 1-0 win over Wolves last time out, the first match following the end of the January transfer window, it was interesting to see the squad pretty much in its entirety at Molineux.

Reducing the numbers down to just 20, any one absence from the senior group sees an academy star come in. On this occasion just two couldn’t make it up to the midlands, with Zachariah Olumide Awe and Arthur Okonkwo taking the spare places on the bench.

The two they replaced were Bernd Leno and Takehiro Tomiyasu, with the latter of those being the big worry for Arteta ahead of Saturday’s London derby.

Leno was absent with Covid and is expected to recover, while the first choice right-back is still touch and go despite being pictured training at London Colney.

He was on his own and hasn’t linked up with the rest of the group yet, and even if he’s 85% fit it would be foolish to risk him now, especially off the back of Cedric Soares putting in his best performance of the season in his stead. Aside from injury worries, Gabriel Martinelli will serve his one-game suspension for his sending off against Wolves.

As for the visitors, Frank could include Christian Eriksen after the Dane played in a behind-closed-doors friendly against alongside Josh Dasilva. Meanwhile, Ivan Toney is expected to return from a calf injury that kept him out of the past two matches.

Continued on next page…