Teams: Leeds
Jesse Marsch makes two changes from the XI that lost 4-0 to Man City. Dan James and Joe Gelhardt, who both came on as subs then, start today, replacing Pascal Struijk and the injured Stuart Dallas. It’s a more attacking side, which suggests that Marsch is eyeing all three points.
Leeds (4-2-3-1) Meslier; Ayling, Llorente, Koch, Firpo; Phillips, Klich; Raphinha, James, Harrison; Gelhardt.
Subs Klaesson, Hjelde, Bate, Struijk, Shackleton, Cresswell, Greenwood, Gray, Rodrigo.
Teams: Arsenal
Mikel Arteta’s line-up is as expected, except that Nuno Tavares gives way to Cedric Soares at left-back. If Tavares is fit, it seems a bit harsh after he opened the scoring against Man United.
Arsenal (4-2-3-1) Ramsdale; Tomiyasu, Holding, Gabriel, Soares; Elneny, Xhaka; Saka, Odegaard, Martinelli; Nketiah.
Subs Leno, Tavares, White, Oulad M’hand, Lokonga, Patino, Smith Rowe, Pépé, Swanson, Lacazette.
Preamble
Afternoon everyone and welcome to the battle for fourth in the Premier League – fourth from top, where Arsenal are sitting pretty, and fourth from bottom, where Leeds are feeling fretful. Arsenal should be in a simple two-horse race for the last Champions League place with Spurs, although Chelsea seem determined to turn it into a twisted love triangle. Meanwhile Leeds are the processed cheese in a Greggs sandwich between Everton and Burnley, and if it all comes down to goal difference they’re doomed.
Leeds can hardly expect to win here after crashing to a 4-1 defeat in the reverse fixture, but they have to make sure they fare no worse than Everton do today at Leicester. Thanks to Jesse Marsch and the new-manager bounce, Leeds’ form has actually been better than Arsenal’s over the past six games (11 points to nine). But it’s been worse over the past three, as Arsenal have come roaring back from three perplexing defeats with crucial wins over Chelsea, Manchester United and West Ham. As the third-best home team in the league, they should sweep Leeds aside, but they may be distracted by the fact that they have a far bigger occasion on Thursday – Spurs away.
Kick-off is at 2pm (UK time), and I’ll be back soon with the teams. In the meantime, do join Rob Smyth to see if Arsenal can win one league this season.