3 non-negotiable starters for Arsenal as 2 drop to the bench against Liverpool

Arsenal's hectic fixture schedule continues as Mikel Arteta's men visit Anfield on Sunday afternoon, looking to end their 12 year winless run at the famous old stadium on Merseyside.

The Gunners haven't beaten the Reds in the north-west since 2012, when goals from Lukas Podolski and Santi Cazorla gave Arsene Wenger's side all three points against Brendan Rodgers' Liverpool. This hoodoo has gone on for far too long, and it needs to end on Sunday.

After Manchester City lost to Brighton on Saturday afternoon, the North Londoners have a chance to usurp their primary title rivals and move three points clear at the summit of the Premier League table. It's not an easy task, given Liverpool have shown signs of promise under Andoni Iraola in recent weeks, but Arsenal are clearly the better team and need to make their superiority count.

Arteta simply needs to play the best possible team available to him. With that said, here are three players who must start against Liverpool and two who must be kept on the sidelines.

3 unbenchable players for Arsenal against Liverpool

Mikel Merino

Viktor Gyokeres vs Kai Havertz is the debate dominating the Arsenal discourse at the moment, but little has been discussed about the third potential candidate to fill the number nine spot for the Gunners at Anfield.

With both first-choice strikers struggling for form at the moment, Arteta must turn towards Mikel Merino. The Spaniard was outstanding in his last outing against Everton last week and deserves an opportunity to start as a reward for this performance.

Liverpool have a sturdy defence based on the underlying metrics, so Arsenal may not get many clear-cut opportunities. When they do come, they'll want them to to fall to Merino, who has arguably shown himself to be the most deadly finisher in Arteta's squad.

On top of all this, both Gyokeres and Havertz played 90 minutes at Fleetwood, whereas Merino was rested entirely.

Bruno Guimaraes

Martin Odegaard and Declan Rice are shoo-ins to start at the moment in the midfield, with both players in outstanding form. However, the player to complete the trio in the middle of the park is much more up for debate.

Myles Lewis-Skelly has been performing admirably in recent weeks, but Bruno Guimaraes is needed in this one. The Brazilian will provide Arsenal with more impetus in the final third, and the Gunners will need this additional creativity to unlock Liverpool's solid defensive unit.

Jurrien Timber

Arteta has switched between his two right-backs more than he's switched between two players in any other position over the last month. Both Ben White and Jurrien Timber have been excellent, but the pick for this one is obvious.

Bradley Barcola is Liverpool's primary outlet, with the Reds using his pace to spark transitions. While he may be moved to the right to accomodate Cody Gakpo, it's also possible Iraola just goes with the Frenchman.

Timber's defensive superiority over White will therefore be needed.

2 players who must drop to the bench for Arsenal against Liverpool

Kai Havertz

If Arteta doesn't want to go with the unorthodox but potentially exciting Merino up front, then Havertz should start. However, the German's recent struggles mean he doesn't look best placed to make an impact on Sunday. He probably needs a short spell out of the team.

Thus, he should drop to the bench.

Viktor Gyokeres

Under no circumstances should Gyokeres start at Anfield. The Swede has a diabolical record against the better teams in the league, scoring no goals and managing just five shots in 646 minutes against Manchester City, Liverpool, Manchester United, Chelsea, and Aston Villa last season.

The table above shows Viktor Gyokeres' 2025/26 stats in the Premier League vs Manchester City, Liverpool, Manchester United, Chelsea and Aston Villa.

He offers absolutely nothing against teams of this calibre. Arteta should arguably not even view the number nine as an option off the bench.

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