“As a manager who’s determined to win the League, I must replace him as a club’s captain… let’s try something different”: Mikel Arteta reveals the reason he replaced Martin Odegaard as the Arsenal captain
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta is reportedly plotting a brand-new role for fan favourite Kai Havertz ahead of their north London derby clash against Tottenham, and the tactical tweak will also impact deadline day summer signing Raheem Sterling.
Arsenal without key players ahead of crucial derby against Spurs
The north Londoners go into this all-important match against Spurs off the back of their first dropped points of the new Premier League campaign, with Brighton holding Arteta’s side to a 1-1 draw at the Emirates Stadium last weekend.
Joao Pedro’s second-half strike cancelled out a stunning lobbed finish from Havertz, but the game also had disastrous consequences for star midfielder Declan Rice, who was perhaps unfairly sent off for two bookable offences against the Seagulls.
Rice will now miss Arsenal’s trip to Tottenham, with summer signing Mikel Merino also sidelined for nearly two months after fracturing his shoulder in training at London Colney.
Merino could be their fourth potential absentee, as both Takehiro Tomiyasu and Kieran Tierney are also very unlikely to feature in Arsenal’s next game, with no return date confirmed yet for the pair.
Rice and Merino’s absence in particular will leave Arteta pretty short in midfield, but there is some good news, as Sterling could well make his Arsenal debut against Spurs following his arrival at the eleventh hour on deadline day.
The 29-year-old, who worked under Arteta at Man City, is a proven Premier League player who boasts plenty of both goals and assists from stints at every high-profile English club he’s been with.
Sterling also possesses big-game and trophy-winning experience, which will be invaluable for Arteta, as he seeks to make it third-time-lucky and finally beat his old mentor Pep Guardiola to a domestic league crown.
