Football London
Albert Sambi Lokonga comes into the Arsenal starting XI for their Premier League clash with Aston Villa.
Injuries in midfield have severely depleted the Gunners side. Mohamed Elneny was ruled out with a potentially serious hamstring injury he sustained vs Fulham, while Thomas Partey is out for a couple of weeks with a thigh strain. There had been hopes that Oleksandr Zinchenko might make the squad after a knee sprain sustained in training, but the Ukrainian misses out again, which means that Sambi Lokonga is in as a six.
That is the only change to the Arsenal starting XI, with Gabriel Jesus, Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli all starting up front despite the impending trip to Manchester United on Sunday and the impressive performance of Eddie Nketiah as a sub on Saturday.
The back four, meanwhile, is unchanged, which means that Kieran Tierney plays yet again as the left back where he’ll be looking to replicate Zinchenko’s impressive performances in the opening few games.
Cedric is also on the bench again for the Gunners, while Marquinhos will once again be hopeful of making his first competitive senior appearance since his arrival from Sao Paolo.
Arsenal starting XI vs Aston Villa – Ramsdale; White, Saliba, Gabriel, Tierney; Sambi Lokonga, Xhaka, Odegaard; Saka, Jesus, Martinelli.
Subs – Turner, Cedric, Tomiyasu, Holding, Smith, Vieira, Smith Rowe, Marquinhos, Nketiah.
