The Gunners Take On Wolverhampton Wanderers in Key English Top Division Encounter

All eyes turn for a fascinating top-flight contest as league leaders the Gunners host bottom-placed Wolves to the Emirates Stadium.

Confirmed Sides

Arsenal have made a trio of alterations from the team that suffered a narrow loss at Villa Park in their previous outing. William Saliba, the Swedish striker and the Brazilian winger are all included in the starting eleven. Martin Ødegaard and the Spanish midfielder drop to the bench, while Riccardo Calafiori is not involved. Saliba returns after sitting out five matches through injury.

The visitors also have made three changes to their lineup after being soundly beaten 4-1 at Molineux by Manchester United last time out. Matt Doherty, João Gomes and Hwang Hee-chan come in. Ki-Jana Hoever and Jhon Arias drop to the substitutes, while Bellegarde misses out altogether.

The Teams in Full

Arsenal: Raya, White, Saliba, Hincapie, Timber, Eze, Zubimendi, Rice, Saka, Gyokeres, Martinelli.
Substitutes: Arrizabalaga, Odegaard, Gabriel Jesus, Norgaard, Trossard, Madueke, Nwaneri, Merino, Lewis-Skelly.

Wolverhampton Wanderers: Johnstone, Mosquera, Agbadou, Toti Gomes, Doherty, Joao Gomes, Andre Trindade, Krejci, Wolfe, Larsen, Hwang.
Bench: Tchatchoua, Mane, Lopez, Hoever, Chirewa, Arokodare, Arias, Santiago Bueno, Jose Sa.

Referee: Robert Jones
Video Assistant Referee: John Brooks

Preamble

Good evening! And I mean, c’mon …

The standings paints a stark contrast. The hosts sit proudly at the pinnacle of the Premier League, while their opponents anchor the division.

… however, even though this will be the 42nd occasion the top side have faced the team propping up the entire table – winning 30 victories from 41, with seven tied games – which team is responsible for two of the four all-time upsets? Why, Wolverhampton Wanderers, that’s who! So while the Arsenal manager will undoubtedly be expecting another victory, Rob Edwards must know that long shots sometimes find the target, and anything is possible. The start is at 8 o'clock in the evening GMT. It’s on!

(The remaining bottom-beats-top victories in the Premier League era are Oldham Athletic's 1-0 win over Manchester United in March 1993, and Tottenham Hotspur – admittedly, this one sounds a bit weird - defeating Liverpool in November 2008.)

George Schroeder
George Schroeder

A seasoned journalist passionate about uncovering stories that bridge cultures and inspire change.