Thomas Partey finally back,Timber to Start, Martinelli benched again’: Predicted Arsenal XI vs Nottingham Forest as Arteta Men set for another Crucial points away from Emirates
Injuries have plagued Arsenal’s season so far and account for a big reason behind the struggle to match the previous campaign’s success. The side scored more goals in the Premier League than any other iteration of the Gunners had managed but key losses in all areas of the field have been affecting form and results.
Despite this, Arsenal have stayed in the title race and with two games next week against Nottingham Forest and league leaders Liverpool have a chance to go within just two points of their rivals. That is of course if Liverpool are able to beat Chelsea in midweek first otherwise Arsenal could even look to go above them.
Arsenal have been without defender Takehiro Tomiyasu and midfielder Mohamed Elneny who have been at the Asia Cup and African Cup of Nations respectively. Meanwhile, Thomas Partey and Fabio Vieira have been missing for nearly three months having both undergone surgeries to correct issues.
Additionally, Jurrien Timber remains out with a serious knee injury which needed surgery although the Dutchman has stepped up his recovery considerably and started working with the ball outside to the excitement of all Arsenal fans. Missing £38million worth of investment in the squad has been a truly disappointing reality of the season.
Thomas Partey however could finally return to the fold as Charles Watts reports that the midfielder might be in with a chance of featuring in the Gunners next game. This would be a massive boost to the club’s hopes of continuing the build of momentum from their 5-0 win over Crystal Palace.
“From what I’m hearing, the plan hopefully is that he could return to training this week, and that he potentially could feature against Forest on Tuesday night,” Watts stated on his YouTube channel.
“That is the plan. Obviously, that can all change, it all depends how things go, and the final decision has to be taken during the week, but the plan as far as I’m aware, is that he’s going to come back to training this week, which of course will be great news.
“If everything does stay on track and Thomas Partey does return it’d be fantastic news for Arsenal, because there’s no doubt they have missed him, and if he can come back, and he can stay fit, then he’s going to have a huge, huge impact on Arsenal’s second half of the season.”
The last time we saw Partey play was in the 1-0 win over Manchester City when he came off the bench to play a key pass in the build up to Gabriel Martinelli’s winning goal. In the three months since however the title hopes have taken a major hit and the Ghanaian’s absence has been felt despite Declan Rice’s best efforts.
Fans have waited a long time to see Partey and Rice join forces in the midfield and we might just get that reality next week. It has been some time coming but Mikel Arteta might just be ready to unleash his dream midfield.
Arsenal potential XI vs Nottingham Forest: Raya; White, Saliba, Gabriel, Zinchenko; Partey, Rice, Odegaard; Saka, Jesus, Martinelli.
