After fulfilling their cup duties, Arsenal's players are back in the Premier League. Specifically, the charges Mikel Arteta's will be at the City Ground Stadium in Round 22, where they will challenge Nottingham, who are not having the best of times at the moment. I'll get to form today as well of course, so I won't get ahead of myself. As for Arsenal, they didn't take advantage of the faltering of their currently biggest rivals in Manchester City and Aston Villa in the last league round. The Gunners only drew with Liverpool in the headliner of the round, so the gap at the top remained unchanged. That is also why Arsenal players will want to correct this minor stumble against Nottingham. Now let's move on to all the important things to know ahead of Saturday's clash at the City Ground.
Form
Arsenal experienced compared to Nottingham a completely different cup insert in the program. First of all, Mikel Arteta's charges played two games, while Nottingham played only one. Secondly, Arsenal won both matches, Nottingham failed to win their FA Cup match and crashed out to second league Wrexham after penalty kicks. I will of course look at the form of both teams in a little more detail. Here we go!
Arsenal
After two cup games (4-1 wins against Portsmouth and 3-2 against Chelsea), when Premier League returns to the scene, just a quick reminder of how things are at the top of the table in the top English competition. Arsenal „only“ drew at home to Liverpool in the last league round, thus not taking advantage of the hesitation of the pair of Manchester City and Aston Villa. The Gunners' lead over the aforementioned two remains six points ahead of the twenty-second round. Although the lead could have been higher, it could also have been just as thin. There is no point in going back to the Liverpool game now. The lead is what it is and the only thing that is relevant now is the Nottingham game.
How is the form of Mikel Arteta's charges? Arsenal's last five competitive games have produced four wins and one draw, as well as Arsenal's last five Premier League games. There's probably nothing to argue about here. The Gunners' current form is very, very solid. Apart from the positive results in the last five appearances, it is worth mentioning that Arsenal are currently on a ten-game unbeaten run. Nine wins (one after penalty kicks) and one draw. The long term form, looking at the team's performance in all competitions, is remarkable.
Nottingham
In terms of longer term form, Nottingham are in a really bad way. Especially after last year's good season, it's currently 17th place in the Premier League table is a big disappointment. On top of that, Nottingham have finished in both English cups. Sean Dyche's charges were knocked out of the FA Cup in their last competitive appearance against second-tier Wrexham, who they lost to after a penalty shootout. The only competition in which Nottingham have been relatively successful so far is the Europa League.
It's not much better with the current form of the Foresters either. The balance of the last five competitive matches is as follows. One victory and four defeats (one after penalty kicks). This is practically the same record of the City Ground team in the Premier League. The only mentioned win came in the match against West Ham, who are just behind Nottingham in the table. With this win, Nottingham developed a seven-point lead over the relegation zone. At least there is some positive.
Nottingham's overall form is very poor. And this applies to both the long-term and the current one.
Team and expected line-up
A packed calendar and the third away game in a row from a rational point of view, they encourage rotation of the lineup. However, the reality may be different, and in my opinion it not only can be, but will be. Premier League games are a clear priority for Mikel Arteta and I expect him to send the strongest possible starting eleven to the City Ground Stadium.
Expected line-up
After two games in which he started Kepa, David Raya will return. The composition of the defensive foursome will remain exactly the same, like we did against Chelsea. The position of both stoppers in the team is probably not worth discussing, but there are more options on the edges of the defence. However, Ben White played a great game at Stamford Bridge and Jurriën Timber is a certainty wherever he starts. Therefore, I don't see a single reason to change. The midfield should also run the same formation. I have to admit that I did have the idea that he would start against Nottingham in the number ten position. Eberechi Eze, but I'm more inclined to have a Norwegian footballer in the starting lineup. In the Champions League game against Inter it might be different, but that's for another time. And what about the most offensive part of the lineup? Also unchanged. To sum up, the only change will be the return of the number one goalkeeper between the three poles.
Absences
As usual, we didn't learn anything very concrete from Mikel Arteta's pre-match press conference. The only positive news was that some of the injured players are very close to returning. So close that they could even be part of the squad for the game against Nottingham. In my opinion, the Spanish manager only had in mind Piero Hincapié, but maybe I'm wrong and we will see another player in the nomination, or other players who have been on the sidelines for a while. Among the long-term injured so far are Riccardo Calafiori, Cristhian Mosquera and Max Dowman. Honestly I would be quite surprised by the return of any of them, but maybe it will happen.
Whether or not we will see any players returning from sick leave, not all players will fit into the roster. If I had to guess, they won't be going to Nottingham Christian Nørgaard and Ethan Nwaneri.
About the opponent
As I mentioned with the form, Nottingham definitely is not having a good season. At least compared to last year. Two changes in the manager's position in the current league season is proof that things aren't going to plan at the City Ground. Currently in charge of the Nottingham bench is legendary manager Sean Dyche, who hasn't been able to get the team where it needs to be. But looking at the squad, he certainly has a lot to choose from. He has more than enough individual quality in the team.
Defenders Nikola Milenkovic, Murillo and Neco Williams is one of the mainstays of the defensive line. From Arsenal, he's on loan at Nottingham Oleksandr Zinchenko, who has been nursing a number of injuries since the start of the season. Logically, however, he would not be able to play against his parent club anyway. In midfield, Nottingham rely heavily on a pair of Elliot Anderson and Morgan Gibbs-White. In the most offensive part of the lineup, the biggest problems for the opponent's defence should be caused by Callum Hudson-Odoi, Omari Hutchinson or Igor Jesus. The team is definitely missing an injured goal scorer this year Chris Wood, who scored 20 goals in the Premier League last season.
Overall, a team like Nottingham should be a lot different in the table than they are now.
Match
Again, I'm not coming up with anything new here. On the contrary. Arsenal should dominate the game despite playing away. In addition to the home advantage, Sean Dyche's charges will have the advantage of a longer rest. Arsenal's calendar has been (not only) a little fuller than Nottingham's in the last few days. But that's where the advantages on the Foresters' side end. Mikel Arteta's team has superior quality, width and experience. Current form also plays clearly in the Gunners' favour. Arsenal are simply the clear favourites and that should be evident on the pitch.
Despite everything I wrote a few lines above, I don't think Arsenal are in for an easy game. Nottingham have already embarrassed many a favourite this season, so the north London footballers will have to give a 100% performance. I believe that Arsenal will manage the game at the City Ground and get another important three points in the table. I predict Arsenal to win 2:0.
Next match
Arsenal will conclude a run of four away games in a row with Champions League, which he will join on Tuesday 20 Jan 2026 at 21:00 (CET) in San Siro, Italy. The Gunners' opponent will be none other than Inter Milan.
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.