Arteta must unleash 19yo in new position vs Wigan with Zubimendi & Rice rested

Arsenal will be aiming to return to winning ways when they host Wigan Athletic in the FA Cup fourth round at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday.

The Gunners shared the spoils against Brentford in the Premier League on Thursday. Noni Madueke opened the scoring for Arsenal at the Gtech Community Stadium, but the lead was short-lived as the Bees equalised through Keane Lewis-Potter.

As a result, Arsenal’s lead over Manchester City at the top of the table has been cut short to four points. They will have the opportunity to extend the gap to seven during Wednesday’s encounter against Wolverhampton Wanderers on the road.

The club’s immediate focus will shift to the FA Cup fourth-round tie against the Latics tomorrow.

For the game, Arteta is expected to ring the changes, and we anticipate both Martin Zubimendi and Declan Rice being given a breather. The midfield pairing could start on the substitutes’ bench.

Meanwhile, captain Martin Odegaard is a huge doubt to make the matchday squad. He was spotted limping after a heavy knock to his knee at Brentford and was not pictured in today’s training session.

This is a big indication that he may have sustained a possible injury. With Mikel Merino and Kai Havertz also sidelined, Arteta could be tempted to pick a new partnership in the centre of the park.

Christian Norgaard will obviously start as the holding midfielder against Wigan, while Eberechi Eze is a strong candidate to continue as the attacking midfielder versus the struggling League One outfit.

In our view, it appears the perfect game for Arteta to unleash Myles Lewis-Skelly in a central midfield role. He should get the nod ahead of an inexperienced Ife Ibrahim, who made his debut against Kairat Almaty.

Lewis-Skelly, 19, has had plenty of minutes playing in the heart of the midfield in the youth set-up, but Arteta has exclusively used him as a left-back since his breakthrough into the first team last term.

Sunday provides an ideal opportunity to test the academy graduate in a new role. Arsenal did not sign a replacement for Merino after his serious foot injury. Lewis-Skelly could now provide the solution.

Stats from Transfermarkt.com

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