Arsenal are finally building some momentum this season after they managed to hold on for a 1-0 win at Turf Moor this past weekend. Beating Burnley FC, and away from home too, is never easy and Mikel Arteta should be happy with how his team played.
The Gunners now get back to London where they will be hosting League One side Wimbledon on Wednesday in 3rd round League Cup action. A lot of squad rotation can be expected but let’s took at the players that could miss out on this game.
Arsenal vs Wimbledon FYIs:
Kick-off time: 7:45 PM GMT, 22 September Wednesday
Arsenal Starting XI Prediction: Go here
Form Guide (All Competitions): Arsenal (LWLWW) Wimbledon (DWWWL)
The one player who will definitely miss out on this game is midfielder Granit Xhaka, who is serving the final game of his three-match suspension.
Mohamed Elneny is back in training, but it is not known if he will be fit in time for Wednesday.
Arteta must be worried after having to take off Kieran Tierney, Thomas Partey and Emile Smith Rowe at the weekend. The good news is that all of them are okay with Tierney and Partey only suffering cramps.
Though all three are likely to be fit for Wednesday, they would be rested for the upcoming north London derby.
The last time the Gunners played in this competition was in August where they got a very comprehensive and very much-needed win over West Bromwich Albion.
A repeat of the 6-0 score line is rather unlikely, but the hosts are expected to score a few goals.
One heart-warming aspect of the win over Burnley at the weekend was the defensive solidity. Despite cross after cross coming into the box, the north Londoners dealt with it quite easily.
That should give them more confidence going into this midweek game.
Arsenal have a great chance to win three games in a row and move onto the next round of the EFL Cup. Wimbledon need to be given their due respect, but the Gunners have more than enough in their team to get the win.
This game should be an opportunity for some of the fringe players to impress the boss.