If Declan Rice and/or Leandro Trossard are fit enough to play on Sunday, then they absolutely will feature. Arsenal still need to get one more point to mathematically lock up Champions League football for next year, so manager Mikel Arteta will surely go with his best and brightest against Newcastle United.
If there are guys that need to be rested, it can wait until Championship Sunday; provided UCL qualification for 2025-26 has been secured by this point.
Arsenal FC vs Newcastle United FYIs
Kick: Sun. May 18, 4:30pm, Emirates Stadium, London, UK
Team News: Arsenal Newcastle United
Starting XI Predictions: Arsenal Newcastle United
Google Result Probability Arsenal 48% Draw 26% Newcastle United 26%
For now, we think this is the strongest team possible, given who is available, and who we think might be available. But who knows?
Maybe Kai Havertz makes a cameo here? Could Kieran Tierney, Riccardo Calafiori, Jorginho and even Raheem Sterling feature here?
It all depends on how Arteta chooses to manage the chess pieces.
Arsenal FC Starting Lineup Prediction vs Newcastle United
David Raya; Jurrien Timber, William Saliba, Jakub Kiwior, Myles Lewis-Skelly; Martin Odegaard, Declan Rice, Thomas Partey, Ethan Nwaneri, Gabriel Martinelli; Bukayo Saka
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, the Washington Post and ESPN. You can follow him on Linked In and Twitter