Arteta to make four Arsenal changes vs Wolves as £61m defender returns

Arsenal welcome Wolverhampton Wanderers to the Emirates Stadium in Saturday’s late Premier League kick-off.

The Gunners are just two points ahead of second-placed Manchester City in the table after a dramatic late defeat to Aston Villa (2-1).

The club were back to winning ways with a 3-0 win over Club Brugge on the road in the Champions League on Wednesday.

Arsenal will now aim for a similar outcome against Wolves.

They are heavy favourites to beat the Midlands outfit, who are bottom of the standings with just two points from 15 games.

Manager Mikel Arteta could make four changes to the starting XI this weekend.

Jurrien Timber returns in central defence

Timber travelled with the group to Bruges in midweek, but did not make the matchday squad due to a knock at Villa Park. The Netherlands international was handed a much-needed breather and could be reinstated in the heart of the defence alongside Piero Hincapie.

The £61 million-rated star is poised to replace midfielder Christian Norgaard, who played as a makeshift centre-back versus Brugge. Arteta has repeatedly said that William Saliba could return in a ‘matter of days’, but he has yet to report for training.

The Frenchman could be eased back into action and could return versus Everton later this month. Central defensive duo Gabriel Magalhaes and Cristhian Mosquera are sidelined for the next few weeks due to thigh and ankle injuries respectively.

Declan Rice & Eberechi Eze start in midfield

Martin Zubimendi lined up alongside Mikel Merino and Martin Odegaard in midfield against Brugge. We anticipate a new-look combination against a struggling Wolves outfit.

Declan Rice missed the midweek game in Belgium due to illness. The Englishman was pushing to play on Wednesday and could feature in the number six position tomorrow.

Zubimendi and Merino both played 90 minutes against Brugge, and the duo could be given a breather. Arteta is likely to rotate, having spoken about the danger of overusing some players. The Wolves game offers the perfect opportunity to do so.

For the first time in 10 weeks, the manager could start Rice in the number six role with Eze and Martin Odegaard operating ahead of him in the centre of the park. Odegaard is still finding his form after injury. His 71st-minute substitution in midweek suggests he could reclaim a starting role.

Bukayo Saka back on the right wing

Noni Madueke had a phenomenal outing on the right wing versus Brugge. He opened the scoring with a stunning strike from outside the box into the top right corner of the net. The Englishman capped his man of the match performance with a headed goal shortly after the half-time interval.

Gabriel Martinelli was likewise impressive with a superb long-range curling effort to make it 3-0. In our view, Saka is expected to return on the right wing, where he has been ever-present in the league when fit. Madueke could move to the opposite flank against Wolves with Martinelli dropping out. Leandro Trossard is doubtful for the game after picking up a knock to his calf at Villa Park.

Wolves are Madueke’s favourite club in the English top-flight. The former Chelsea man has netted four goals in just three meetings against them. Martinelli has been on the winning side against Wolves on seven out of eight occasions, but the Brazilian has not scored or provided an assist.

Stats from Transfermarkt.com

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