Ceballos and Ozil start, Predicted Arsenal lineup (4-1-2-1-2) to face Aston Villa

Arsenal will be eyeing their first Premier League win in four matches when they entertain Aston Villa at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday. The Gunners have played out 2-2 draws in the past two league meetings against Watford and Tottenham Hotspur, but they will have received a morale boost after the 3-0 triumph over Eintracht Frankfurt in the Europa League opener in midweek.

Team News:

Dinos Mavropanos, Hector Bellerin and Kieran Tierney were handed with valuable minutes for the Under 23s against Wolves on Friday night as they step up their fitness levels following respective injuries. The trio are highly unlikely to make the matchday squad. Elsewhere, Alexandre Lacazette is a sure absentee as he continues to recover from a minor ankle problem. The Frenchman has been tipped to return at the end of the month.

Formation: 4-1-2-1-2

Predicted Lineup:

Emiliano Martinez had a terrific Europa League game against Eintracht Frankfurt in midweek where he made a number of key saves. However, the Argentine is likely to drop to the bench with Bernd Leno taking up the goalkeeping duties.

In the defence, it should be more of the same from recent league games. Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Sead Kolasinac are expected to feature in the right and left-back positions respectively as Bellerin and Tierney are still building up their respective fitness levels.

At the heart of the backline, David Luiz is a confirmed starter under Unai Emery and the Brazil international could be accompanied by Sokratis once more. The Greek was rested in midweek after his below-par performance at Watford but it won’t be a surprise, if he is chosen ahead of the likes of Shkodran Mustafi, Calum Chambers and Rob Holding for the second central defensive role.

In the centre of the park, Emery has prefer the midfield diamond which worked effectively during the first half of last weekend’s league clash at Watford. Granit Xhaka will no doubt feature in the holding midfield role with Matteo Guendouzi and Dani Ceballos ahead of him while Mesut Ozil should return to the lineup in the number 10 role following a rest in midweek.

Upfront, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Nicolas Pepe should reclaim their positions. Aubameyang remains an automatic choice with six goals from six appearances this term and the same goes for Pepe, who has impressed with his take-ons without necessarily troubling the opposition net.

Predicted Arsenal XI: