Wilshere, Podolski, Sagna are all still out, while Gibbs is also a contender to miss the game, but with Monreal more than competent it makes sense not to overplay him given his injury record.

Between the sticks

After a decent performance against Bayern and shoddy recent performances from the younger Pole, it could well be Fabianski back between the sticks. Especially given that Wenger has been bigging up Fabianski’s mental strength after the Munich game. While it is a bit of stretch to say that Fabianski should be starting over Szczesney permanently, it is no bad thing that there is some form of competition, especially with some of the below-par performances Szczesny has been putting in recently.

Defence

Full backs are reasonably straight forward: with Sagna still out, Jenkinson will be looking to build on his current form. Gibbs is set to be rested “not due to injury”, but rather to insure he doesn’t aggravate the injury further. Monreal comes back after being cup-tied midweek. As far as centre backs go,  Wenger has said that Vermaelen ( and Szszesny) are vital to the Arsenal squad, after an absolutely nonsense article in the mail linked them with moves away this summer (with no sources or quotes whatsoever). He also stated that “the last game decides the next one”. While trying to interpret what Wenger means by what he says is often futile, it leans towards the opinion that he will be sticking to the defensive partnership that he chose in Munich. Which is completely understandable, considering that getting a clean sheet at the Allianz Arena is no mean feat and both players had very good games.
Midfield

Arteta and Ramsey are most likely to play in the centre of the park, along with one of Cazorla, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Diaby or Rosicky. None of the midfield really dazzled in Munich, but Arteta and Ramsey both had a phenomenal work rate, sprinting till the last minute, deserving a starting XI place.

As for the other midfielder, I could see it going to Diaby, a man who Wenger has always had faith in despite the obvious injury problems. He is listed in the injury list on the website, but Wenger has said nothing about him since the Munich game, which he travelled to, but was not fully recovered enough to play. Wenger might bring him back to bring some strength to the midfield.

He is the best option, considering Rosicky looked very much like a player who hasn’t played in a long time, and Chamberlain’s performances haven’t been as thrilling as they were last year (Understandable for a 19 year old in only his second season in the Premier League).

Attack

Theo Walcott and Olivier Giroud are set to keep their places after the Munich game, with no other real alternative available. The most dynamic player in the squad (Santi Cazorla) is expected to be play down the left. Personally I think his talents are best deployed as a central midfielder, but someone has to play LW, and he is the only option if you discount Gervinho/Arshavin as not good enough to be considered.

Possible line up

Fabianski; Monreal, Koscielny, Mertesacker, Jenkinson; Arteta, Ramsey; Cazorla, Diaby, Walcott; Giroud

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