Two sides still waiting for that elusive Champions League title clash in a battle of the behemoths on Tuesday evening, as Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain scrap it out at the Emirates Stadium.
While the Gunners were fortunate to nab a point off of Atalanta BC on matchday one, their visitors were also counting their lucky stars in a 1-0 victory over La Liga surprise package Girona.
When David Raya magnificently sprung into action – quite literally – to keep out Ollie Watkins‘s close-range header against Aston Villa, the Arsenal number one had surely pulled off the best save he would make all season long, and potentially for the rest of his career.
However, the ex-Brentford man astonishingly outdid himself in Bergamo just a couple of weeks later, producing a tremendous double save from Mateo Retegui‘s penalty and follow-up to hold the Europa League winners to a goalless draw, one in which Arsenal sorely missed creator-in-chief Martin Odegaard.
Keeping a clean sheet to a team that tore Liverpool and Bayer Leverkusen to shreds last season was no mean feat in itself, though, and while Arsenal are the highest of all the teams on one point in 16th place, the fledgling Champions League rankings mean little at this stage.
Raya was powerless to stop two efforts from Leicester City’s James Justin at the weekend, but Arsenal produced another bedlam-inducing late show to prevail 4-2 over the Foxes and move level on points with Rodri-less Manchester City in the Premier League standings, as the prospect of another gripping title race heat up by the week.
Still yet to lose in any competition this season, while scoring 11 goals in their last three games versus Leicester, Bolton Wanderers and Manchester City, Arsenal hope that their recent feats in front of goal can help them avoid setting an unwanted club record; they have failed to score in their last two Champions League games but have never drawn blanks three times in a row.
Arteta’s erstwhile club PSG looked set to share the same fate as their upcoming hosts on matchday one, as no matter how much they huffed and puffed against a beleaguered Girona backline, last season’s third-placed La Liga finishers were holding firm at the Parc des Princes.
However, just as the clock struck 90, Nuno Mendes‘s cross – which should have been meat and drink for Paulo Gazzaniga – instead squirmed through the body of the ex-Tottenham Hotspur goalkeeper, who collapsed in despair as his horror mistake gifted PSG all three points.
Luis Enrique‘s men did not ride their luck so much on Friday evening, though, as they made it five wins from their opening six Ligue 1 games of the season with a 3-1 triumph over Rennes, where the electrifying Bradley Barcola scored his fifth and six goals of the domestic campaign.
Leading Monaco on goal difference at the top of the Ligue 1 rankings, Les Parisiens have some European wrongs to right at the Emirates, as last year’s 4-1 embarrassment at the hands of Newcastle United represented their third straight loss away to an English team in the Champions League.
Tuesday’s contest will see Arsenal and PSG reunite eight years on from their clashes in the 2016-17 group stage, both of which ended level, but the Gunners edged out their French counterparts 2-1 on aggregate in the 1993-94 UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup semi-finals en route to their first and only European trophy to date.
A quintet of long-term Arsenal absentees in Odegaard (ankle), Mikel Merino (shoulder), Oleksandr Zinchenko (calf), Kieran Tierney (hamstring) and Takehiro Tomiyasu (knee) will play no part in Tuesday’s game, although Merino is in with a slim chance of coming back for the weekend’s Premier League affair with Southampton.
Arteta is also sweating over the fitness of the consistent Ben White, who has missed the Gunners’ last two contests due to a knee issue, so there is unlikely to be any rest for Riccardo Calafiori and Jurrien Timber – only just back from their own knocks – out wide.
Due to Arsenal’s third goal against Leicester going down as a Wilfred Ndidi own goal, Bukayo Saka was denied the unprecedented record of setting up a goal in each of his first six Premier League appearances this season. However, the Englishman has directly contributed to seven goals in five Champions League games at the Emirates – no Arsenal player has amassed more in their first five home matches in the competition.
Arteta and Enrique can empathise on the injury front, as the French champions also have a handful of long-term absentees in their ranks such as Goncalo Ramos (ankle), Lucas Hernandez (knee) and Presnel Kimpembe (Achilles).
However, Gianluigi Donnarumma, Vitinha, Marco Asensio, Desire Doue and Nuno Mendes have all made the squad following concerns of their own, although only the former and latter may be selected to the first XI.
After Randal Kolo Muani was guilty of wastefulness against Girona, Lee Kang-in started up top and scored PSG’s second against Rennes, but both men should now start in tandem up front after Ousmane Dembele was dropped from the squad, reportedly due to a bust-up with Enrique.
Arsenal possible starting lineup:
Raya; Timber, Saliba, Gabriel, Calafiori; Havertz, Partey, Rice; Saka, Trossard, Martinelli
Paris Saint-Germain possible starting lineup:
Donnarumma; Hakimi, Marquinhos, Pacho, Mendes; Ruiz, Neves, Zaire-Emery; Lee, Kolo Muani, Barcola
