Arsenal welcome Brentford to the Emirates on Wednesday night. The team are looking to bounce back after their 1-1 draw against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, which felt like a game they probably should have pushed further.
especially since Chelsea went down to ten men but still managed to score first through Trevoh Chalobah. Mikel Merino’s header rescued them a point.
Brentford, on the other hand, arrive with a strange kind of momentum. Their 3-1 win over Burnley was decided in the final stretch, with all the goals coming in during the last ten minutes.
Igor Thiago grabbed a brace, while Dango Ouattara slipped in the third, giving the Bees a confidence boost right when they needed it.
Arsenal still sit five points clear at the top, and matches like this are ones Arteta definitely wants to control without too much drama.
Team News
Softfootball understands that Arsenal will be without William Saliba, who recently extended his contract with the Gunners. He also missed the Chelsea game due to injury, and with Gabriel still out too, it means Cristhian Mosquera and Piero Hincapié should continue as the centre-back pairing.
Noni Madueke, Martin Ødegaard, and Viktor Gyökeres all came off the bench last weekend, and there’s a good chance they get pushed into the starting XI.
The club posted a photo of their remaining games of the year via their official X account.
View the post below:
For Brentford, Fabio Carvalho, Antoni Milambo, and Josh Dasilva are all still out until 2026. Aside from that, Keith Andrews is likely to keep things steady and stick with a strong, familiar setup.
Possible Lineups
Arsenal:
Raya; Timber, Mosquera, Hincapié, Lewis-Skelly; Ødegaard, Zubimendi, Rice; Saka, Gyökeres, Madueke
Brentford:
Kelleher; Kayode, Collins, Van den Berg, Ajer, Henry; Yarmoliuk, Henderson; Damsgaard; Ouattara, Thiago
Softfootball’s Prediction
Arsenal have been in fine form this season, especially at home, but Brentford can be unpredictable sometimes, in a good way, sometimes completely the opposite, but their late-game sharpness could still give Arsenal a bit of trouble.
Prediction: Arsenal 2–1 Brentford
