By Arsenal will be eyeing a place at the top of the Premier League when they take on Brentford in a London derby on Saturday evening.
With Manchester City and Liverpool facing each other earlier in the day, live on talkSPORT, the Gunners may be handed the opportunity to move above them in the table.
But Mikel Arteta’s side will need to win their game no matter what happens as they look to build on a 3-1 win over Burnley before the international break.
They take on Thomas Frank’s men who have turned their season around in recent weeks, however, they head into this one off the back of a 3-0 defeat to Liverpool.
Brentford vs Arsenal: Havertz at left-back?
Could we see Kai Havertz play at left-back for Arsenal this weekend?
Germany manager Julian Nagelsmann shocked fans as he decided to name the 24-year-old as part of the defence in his lineup against Turkey.
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But the Gunners man silenced the doubters after only five minutes as he scored the opener.
Following the match, Nagelsmann said: “Kai said he wanted to do it, wanted to try it — for a first time in an unfamiliar position, he did extremely well.”
So considering Havertz was keen on playing there, will that encourage Arteta to try it out?
Arsenal’s left-backs usually come inside and join the midfield, meaning the German may suit the role and it could be a position that ignites his form.
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- After beating Arsenal 2-0 in their first-ever Premier League game against them in August 2021, Brentford are winless in their last three against the Gunners (D1 L2).
- This will be Mikel Arteta’s 200th match in charge of Arsenal in all competitions (W115 D34 L50). Whatever the result today, he’s won more matches in his first 200 in charge of the Gunners than any of the other nine managers to reach the milestone with the club.
Brentford vs Arsenal: Team news
Brentford saw the return of Ben Mee last time out after he returned from a spell out.
Keane Lewis-Potter and Charlie Goode continued their recovery in a behind-closed-doors friendly alongside Ivan Toney who returns from his ban soon.
Rico Henry remains out long-term though, and so do Josh Dasilva and Kevin Schade.
For Arsenal, Fabio Vieira is banned after receiving a straight red card against Burnley.
Jurrien Timber, Gabriel Jesus, Thomas Partey, and Emile Smith Rowe are all expected to remain on the sidelines for this clash.
Captain Martin Odegaard is likely to be fit to play from the off despite not being picked by Norway due to an ongoing hip injury.
Gabriel Martinelli was also carrying a knock, however, there are no worries about the winger after he played 90 minutes and scored for Brazil on international duty.
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- Since losing 3-0 to Arsenal in this exact fixture last season, Brentford have gone unbeaten in their last 14 Premier League London derby matches (W8 D6). However, only Arsenal (16) are on a longer current such run without defeat (W11 D5).
- Arsenal have already won away at Brentford this season, beating them 1-0 in the League Cup third round. The last time they won two away games against a fellow London side in the same season was against Crystal Palace in 1992-93 (2-1 Premier League, 3-1 League Cup).
Brentford vs Arsenal: What has been said?
Havertz has been speaking about his time at Arsenal so far ahead of this game.
Speaking to the Gunners’ website, he said: “From outside, Arsenal always looked like a family.
“That’s the feeling I got when playing. And when I joined, that was exactly what it was like, and the staff are really nice too – and that makes life easier for a new player.
“From the first minute that I spoke to Mikel about joining Arsenal, I had this feeling that he respects all of us very much, so that was also a big part of me joining the club.
“I just felt the togetherness of the club from the players and especially within the fans and the whole club
“At the training ground, it’s like a big family – and this is a big factor to achieve great things.”
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- Arsenal have won their last two away games against Brentford in all competitions, beating them 3-0 in this exact fixture last season. The Gunners had won just one of their first seven visits to the Bees between 1902 and 2021 (D1 L5).
- Brentford have lost just one of their last 10 home league games (W5 D4), going down 3-1 against Everton in September. They’ve beaten Burnley 3-0 and West Ham 3-2 in their last two at home, last winning three consecutively while scoring 3+ goals each time in March 2015.
Brentford vs Arsenal: How to follow
This Premier League clash will be played on Saturday, November 25.
Kick-off at the Gtech Community Stadium is scheduled for 5:30pm.
The game will be broadcast live on TNT Sports.
Fans can sign up to watch the match for £29.99/month. More details can be found here.
talkSPORT and talkSPORT.com will provide you will all the news and reaction.
To tune in to talkSPORT or talkSPORT 2 through the website, click HERE for the live stream. You can also listen via the talkSPORT app, on DAB digital radio, through your smart speaker and on 1089 or 1053 AM.
