ARSENAL boss Mikel Arteta could make two big changes to his side for the top of the table clash with Manchester City.
The Gunners were left fuming after being denied all three points against Brentford on Saturday because VAR failed to spot an offside.
Bees star Christian Norgaard was in an offside position when he crossed for Ivan Toney to equalise.
The PGMOL contacted Arsenal over the incident to explain what led to the mistake – VAR Lee Mason had failed to draw the lines to check if Norgaard was offside.
It is not the first time poor officiating has cost Arteta’s side this season, and they could be more than two points clear at the top of the league if correct decisions had been made.
However, they could stretch their advantage to five points if they can overcome second-placed Man City, who beat Aston Villa 3-1 on Sunday, tomorrow.
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And the Cityzens may also have to go into the showdown without top scorer Erling Haaland.
But Arteta will be more concerned with his side as he plots the downfall of Pep Guardiola’s men.
He has stuck with a settled side for most of the campaign, but after a hectic few weeks of fixtures, both Leandro Trossard and Takehiro Tomiyasu could find themselves thrown into the mix.
Winger Trossard, a January arrival from Brighton, scored his first goal for the club against Brentford after coming off the bench to replace Gabriel Martinelli.
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Now the Belgian is pushing for a start instead of the Brazilian following his impressive cameo.
One concern could be the fact that the Gunners have failed to keep a clean sheet in their last three league matches.
And that could lead to a slight change to Arteta’s preferred back four in front of goalie Aaron Ramsdale.
Ben White, William Saliba, Gabriel Magalhaes and former City man Oleksandr Zinchenko are the regulars, but Japanese right-back Tomiyasu could get the nod to step in and freshen things up as an alternative.
With Gabriel Jesus still injured, Eddie Nketiah will lead the line with Bukayo Saka providing the ammunition.
And captain Martin Odegaard, Thomas Partey and Granit Xhaka are all expected to line up in midfield.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
