Arsenal are back in action this afternoon, as the Gunners travel to Merseyside to battle Everton for three points at Goodison Park.
Mikel Arteta will be hoping that his team can rewrite recent history with today’s visit, as the north Londoners are five games without a win at Goodison, with last season’s 1-0 loss being one of the north London outfit's few poor performances in 2022/23.
Despite having the international break since their last match, Arteta’s side may still be catching their breath after the late dramatics against Manchester United at the Emirates.
At 1-1 heading towards the 90th minute, it looked as though Alejandro Garnacho had won it with one minute to go, however his goal was ruled out by VAR for an extremely tight offside decision.
It quickly went from scenes of jubilation to despair in the away end, as Declan Rice gave Arsenal the lead in the 96th minute, followed by Gabriel Jesus adding the hosts third in the 101st minute of play.
It was a memorable win for the Gunners, but all attention will now be on Everton as they bid to turn their fortunes around at Goodison.
What is the latest Arsenal team news?
During the international break, there was some concern over Bukayo Saka’s fitness, with Gareth Southgate revealing that he didn’t feature against Scotland due to pain in his achilles.
Arteta denied that Saka will be out for the trip to Merseyside, adding that every player has trained as normal following their international duties.
One injury update comes with reference to Thomas Partey, who Arteta revealed is a “few weeks away” with a muscle injury.
Eddie Nketiah led the line once again as Jesus got back to full fitness, however the Englishman could face a battle to start after the Brazilian’s goal and performance last time out.
The 26-year-old isn’t the only one who could challenge the Englishman for a spot this afternoon, with another forward displaying emphatic form of late.
Should Leandro Trossard start against Everton?
One player that shone on international break was January signing Leandro Trossard, who scored a mesmerising goal during Belgium’s win over Estonia in the European Qualifiers.
The 28-year-old has made just two appearances for the Gunners this season, adding to the 20 he made in his debut Premier League season with his new club, in which he scored once and registered 10 assists.
Previously lauded as “clinical” by football analyst Tactics Journal (Kyle Boas), Trossard’s display during the break could have him in contention to start against the Toffees.
The £90k-per-week Belgian has an advantage due to his versatility, where he could be on the cards to usurp either Nketiah or more likely Kai Havertz, who has been poor since moving from west to north London this summer.
Trossard has the play-making ability to play behind the striker where the German has been roaming so far this season, as well as being an accomplished finisher to play more advanced, with him guaranteed to bring a threat regardless of his position.
Considering Everton’s winless campaign so far and Arsenal’s need to win at Goodison, introducing the former Brighton whiz to the fold at this point could be the statement needed to build on the spectacular win against United.