Arsenal in Prague! A football holiday not only for all Czech Arsenal fans, but also for Slavia fans. The fate of this year's Champions League gave us, the fans of the North London team, one very pleasant surprise, a match against Slavia in Prague's Eden. Arsenal matches at the Emirates Stadium are unmatched, but seeing the Canaries in Prague has its own charm. This is not the first time the two teams have met. Eighteen years ago, Arsenal and Slavia faced each other in the Champions League group stages. Four years ago, the two teams ran into each other again in the quarter-finals of the Europa League. Arsenal came out victorious in both matches, but Slavia managed to draw in each of them. What can we expect from the clash between Slavia and Arsenal this time? I will focus on everything essential in the following lines. Let's get to it.
Form
We've finally reached the stage where they have both teams have played five competitive matches in a relatively short time sequence. As you all know, five games is the ideal benchmark for me to assess my current form.
Arsenal
On Arsenal's form I have nothing new to add since the last game. Perhaps I should just add that Mikel Arteta's charges beat Burnley comfortably 2-0 at Turf Moor at the weekend. Except another victory (ninth in a row), the Emirates Stadium footballers scored seventh clean sheet in a row. From the author's point of view, I am running out of inspiration for what to write in this subchapter. On the other hand, from the perspective of an Arsenal fan, I actually couldn't be happier and I'll happily continue to graze with this issue. So, long story short, Arsenal are in great form at the moment.
Slavia
On the other hand, Slavia's record in the last five competitive matches is not very good. Two wins and three draws are not enough for Slavia in Czech competitions. Of course, the goalless draw with Atalanta, which is very valuable by the way, is hidden among those five games, but the rest of the results? No glory. If I go chronologically, Slavia failed to score in three games in a row. From the other point of view, they have not scored in these matches. Logically, three goalless draws were born, in the league with Zlín, in the Champions League with Atalanta and then again in the league with Olomouc. But in the next two games Slavia picked up. First, it beat Zlín 4-0 in the MOL Cup and in its last appearance before the match with Arsenal, it defeated Baník Ostrava 2-0 in Eden.
Where to look for positives? I'm sure that in that Jindřich Trpišovský's team managed to return to the winning streak. Moving further back in time, Slavia was on an unflattering streak of five games without a win, which was broken only by a cup win against Zlín. Even more impressive is Slavia's defensive record, which is not as good as Arsenal's, but certainly worth mentioning and praising. Slavia hasn't scored a goal for five games in a row. Can he keep a clean sheet against the favourite from London? Let's be surprised.
Bottom line, the current form of Slavia is definitely not ideal.
Team and expected line-up
Although Arsenal continue a packed schedule in which plays competitive matches practically every three days, so I don't think Mikel Arteta will make any drastic changes to the lineup this time. But we will certainly see some, whether for disciplinary or health reasons. What line-up do I expect? Let's take a look at it together.
David Raya
I'm sure nothing will change between the three poles, will start in the base David Raya. In addition, his biggest competitor and teammate, Kepa Arrizabalaga, was not part of the team at Monday's pre-game practice, so Ray's start is almost 100%. Tommy Setford is expected to be the substitute goalkeeper in Eden.
Ben White
Another game that presents an ideal opportunity for rotation on the right edge of the defense. Jurriën Timber will replace the injured Jurriën Timber in the starting lineup Ben White. The English defender was and still is (as confirmed by Mikel Arteta himself in a recent interview) one of the key players. His chemistry with Bukay Saka and Martin Ødegaard is unbelievable. Although the Arsenal captain is still not fit, White should operate on the right side of the pitch „at least“ with Saka.
William Saliba
I had a lot of hesitation about the lineup this time.. In the end, I came to the conclusion that Mikel Arteta will play it safe. That means that will start at right-back William Saliba, who could be replaced by Cristhian Mosquera during the game if the situation is favourable.
Gabriel
As usual, what is true for William Saliba is also true for his Brazilian partner. Gabriel will also start in the starting lineup. Piero Hinacpié could start in his place, but somehow I am not convinced that this game is suitable for this rotation. It is possible that we will see the Ecuadorian on the pitch in Eden, but I don't think it will be from the first minute. Maybe I'm wrong.
Riccardo Calafiori
At the position of left fullback Myles Lewis-Skelly has started the last two Champions League games, but now I think the Spanish manager will change the „regular“ rotation in that position. Theoretically, Piero Hincapié, who is slowly but surely starting to get some space on the pitch after his injury, could also start against Slavia, but I'm more inclined to think that Italian defender will start from the first minute in Eden Riccardo Calafiori.
Declan Rice
Declan Rice he's playing in tremendous form at the moment, which he proved in his last game against Burnley. Apart from being one of the top scorers, the English midfielder dominated the pitch in all aspects. In the absence of Martín Zubimendi, his presence on the pitch will be even more important for Arsenal. Declan Rice won't miss the starting lineup against Slavia.
Mikel Merino
Mikel Merino in my opinion, the Spanish manager will not be missing in the starting line-up. The question is whether he will appear in the centre of midfield or at the tip of the attack. If Merino does jump into the number nine position, Christian Nørgaard would take his place in the middle of the field. This is also a fairly realistic option. However, I'm probably leaning more towards the Spanish international starting in the midfield this time.
Ethan Nwaneri
As I announced in a previous blog, I expect that will get a chance in the starting line-up against Slavia Ethan Nwaneri. But that doesn't mean that Eberechi Eze, who has been a regular in the number 10 position lately, will be missing. I'll get to Eze in a bit though, back to Nwaneri. The young Englishman is shone last week with a successful performance in the ELF Cup, which he even crowned with the winning goal. At the weekend, he was also on the pitch against Burnley and now he should get another chance against Slavia. Could my words about Mikel Arteta using the 18-year-old in the current season be coming true? I hope so.
Bukayo Saka
With the expected return of Ben White to the starting lineup, we can enjoy the dreaded tandem White - Saka. There is no doubt that on the right wing will start from the first minute Bukayo Saka. The star winger will definitely want to make up for his missed goal scoring opportunities after the Burnley game. Moreover, the English footballer should be the biggest driving force of the Gunners' offense in the absence of Viktor Gyökers.
Eberechi Eze
Eberechi Eze this time he will start a bit unconventionally on the left side of the back row. Why, you ask? Because, in my opinion, Leandro Trossard will be operating at the top of the attack. This suggests that Mikel Arteta will use the reinforcements from Crystal Palace on the fringes of the pitch to try other options than the ones we are used to. I've already mentioned this with Merino and I have to mention it with Eze as well. If the Spanish footballer starts at the tip of the attack, it could well be that Leandro Trossard starts on the left wing and Eberechi Eze either starts at number ten at the expense of Nwaneri or even on the substitutes bench. However, I'm leaning towards the lineup as I present it here.
Leandro Trossard
I think we're in for a surprise at the top of the attack Leandro Trossard. I can't shake the feeling that Mikel Arteta will start with this starting eleven at Eden. The advantage is that Arsenal players can rotate this lineup in the offense virtually any way they want. In addition to Trossard, the aforementioned Merino, Eze or even Nwaneri can appear at the top of the attack in certain situations.
Substitutes
The A team players should not be missing on the substitutes' bench Tommy Setford, Cristhian Mosquera, Piero Hincapié, Jurriën Timber, Myles Lewis-Skelly, Christian Nørgaard and Max Dowman. Given the numerous absences of (not only) offensive players, a youngster could be among the substitutes Andre Harriman-Annous, who only made his A team debut last week in the EFL Cup against Brighton. The Champions League allows up to 12 substitutes, so if Mikel Arteta wants to completely fill the bench, he will have to use other players from the academy, because unfortunately no one else is available.
That brings me to the absences. Due to injury, none of the foursome will still be available Kai Havertz, Gabriel Jesus, Noni Madueke and Martin Ødegaard. I wrote about the return of Madueke, Havertz and Ødegaard last time, so now I will just quickly remind you that their comeback is expected before the derby with Tottenham. They won't play in Eden due to health problems Gabriel Martinelli nor Viktor Gyökeres. As I already mentioned today, most probably the goalie didn't go to Prague either. Kepa. Mikel Arteta's nomination will be missing one more big name, Martín Zubimendi. The Spanish midfielder has to serve a yellow card penalty.
About the opponent
To be honest, I'm I'm definitely not one of the biggest fans of Czech football, rather the opposite. So from me, definitely. don't expect a detailed analysis of Slavia's style of play in the Czech top competition and in Europe, or an analysis of its strengths and weaknesses. Rather, I would approach this subsection from a broader perspective, one that looks together at what Slavia means in Europe.
On the European scene, in the long term, only two Czech clubs, Slavia and Sparta, two irreconcilable rivals, but they represent the best in the history of Czech football. At home and in the world. Sure, Viktorka from Plzeň had its moment among the elite (and a rather long one) in the modern football history, but when Czech football is mentioned in Europe, most foreign fans think of Prague S. Despite this, Slavia is such a football dwarf in the Champions League.
We looked at the form in the introduction, so now we just have to look at the Slavie roster. Jindřich Trpišovský has a lot to choose from at the goalkeeper position. The long-term number one in Slavia is the national team goalkeeper Jindřich Staněk, who in recent weeks has been more than worthily represented Jakub Markovič. Among the mainstays of the defence are the experienced Jan Bořil or almost ten years younger David Zima. Other interesting names in the defensive line of Slavia are for example Igoh Ogbu or Daiki Hashioka, who has experience in the English Premier League. The Japanese defender even played against the Gunners in the top English competition in the 2023/2024 season. Michal Sadilek, Lukas Provod or Christos Zafeiris.
Match
Although the Gunners will be missing a number of star players in Prague led by names like Viktor Gyökeres, Martin Ødegaard and Martín Zubimendi, they'll go into the game as clear favourites. And it's no wonder. Arsenal, despite numerous absentees, have such a wide and quality squad that the line-up, whatever line-up they run out with, will have tremendous quality. Add to that the experience of the team, individuals and the manager himself and most importantly the great current form, there's really no question of a favourite. Arsenal surpasses Prague Slavia in all football aspects. The only big advantage for Slavia will be the home environment and the boisterous fans. The fans of Slavia have already presented themselves in the best possible light several times in Europe.
The difference in the quality of the two teams should be reflected in the game. North London players should have the ball on their feet much more often, so they should also set the pace of the game. This means more chances, more finishes and, in theory, more goals. Slavia, on the other hand, will concentrate mainly on defence, in my opinion they will only go on the offensive sporadically, possibly in the form of breakout situations. Personally, I think that Arsenal will be able to cope with Slavia in Eden and that they will take three points from Prague. I predict Arsenal to win 3:0.
Next match
Arsenal have one more game before the national break, which will be played this weekend in the Premier League. The Gunners will once again, for the third time in a row in all competitions, head to an away game, this time at Sunderland. The clash at the Stadium of Light is on the schedule Saturday 8 November 2025 from 18:30 (CET).
See you next time, I'll look forward to it!
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Editor, administrator and editor of the True Gunner Diary website, but above all a devoted Arsenal fan. I started with sports articles at the Tipsport bookmaker, where I have published more than 100 blogs. If you want to know more about me, check out the section of the same name here on the site.