Arsenal predicted XI vs RC Lens as Mikel Arteta rides storm with Havertz gamble

Arteta hails Saliba's leadership ahead of Arsenal's trip to Lens

Arsenal’s players will stretch their legs in Lens on Tuesday morning after a nightmare journey before their Champions League clash with RC Lens in France. The Gunners were faced with a five-hour wait at Luton Airport while storms raged around their short hop across the channel and Mikel Arteta will be using the downtime to ensure his players are well-rested after their travel chaos.

A journey that is less than 90 minutes from London by train ended up with the club shipping in dinner from the training ground to the private terminal at Luton as players milled around waiting to board.

After their press conference was cancelled, they finally made it to the northern French town at 10,40pm on Monday night. Arteta will make his final assessment as his players shake off their travel weariness with a stretch this morning.

Express Sport takes a look at how Arsenal could line up to face Lens for their first Champions League away game in seven years on Tuesday evening.

READ MORE Arsenal star missing from training as Arteta gets update on trio including Saka[TEAM NEWS]

Goalkeeper – David Raya

Get used to it folks. For all the talk of Aaron Ramsdale sharing the position with on-loan Brentford goalkeeper David Raya, this has gone the same away as the battle between Ramsdale and Bernd Leno two years before.

Raya remains Arteta’s No 1 choice for the Premier League and European games, while the England international will have to make do with the Carabao Cup and FA Cup.

Defenders – Ben White, William Saliba, Gabriel, Oleksandr Zinchenko

Successful Arsenal teams have always had a fixed four-man defence to build on and Arteta is slowly establishing another.

A long-term injury to Jurrien Timber has rather shaped his selection, but while Arteta could rest players with Manchester City heading to the Emirates on Sunday by playing Takehiro Tomiyasu, or indeed Cedric Soares, the chance to cement another three Champions League points should see him stick with his tried and trusted backline.

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Midfielders – Martin Odegaard, Declan Rice, Kai Havertz

Thomas Partey is set for a return to the bench but his presence is looming large over the midfield in the battle for places. Declan Rice is a shoo-in, unless his recent knock means Arteta puts him in cotton wool for City and player Jorginho as his single pivot.

Martin Odegaard is on fire on the right, which puts all the focus once again on Kai Havertz on the left. After going to the trouble of giving him a meaningless penalty to convert against Bournemouth to boost his confidence, it would seem a cruel blow to immediately drop him.

The team are clearly desperate for the £60m former Chelsea player to find his feet and Arteta knows that binning him from his starting line-up could damage what fragile confidence he appears to have.

But Partey seems all geared up to return for Sunday’s six-pointer and Fabio Vieira is constantly pushing Havertz for his place, so Arteta will only pick him if he genuinely does expect a return to full form.

Forwards – Bukayo Saka, Eddie Nketiah, Gabriel Jesus.

Bukayo Saka has fully shaken off his knock and Arteta’s Mr Dependable, quite simply, plays when he is fit. Similarly, Gabriel Jesus’s tally of 21 Champions League goals marks him down as a player for these midweek European nights.

Gabriel Martinelli has not travelled and that means Leandro Trossard is pretty much the only alternative to Eddie Nketiah.

Surely the charitable spot-kick for Havertz – converted sheepishly but competently-  is not enough to win him back the No 9 duties.

Arsenal’s predicted XI (4-3-3): Raya; White, Saliba, Gabriel, Zinchenko; Odegaard, Rice, Havertz; Saka, Nketiah, Jesus

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