Sterling false 9, Havertz role, Calafiori in – Mikel Arteta’s strongest Arsenal XI vs Tottenham

It’s been a steady start to the Premier League campaign for Mikel Arteta and Arsenal with seven points from their first three games.

The Gunners will feel aggrieved not to have taken maximum points from their most recent outing, having been a goal to the good against Brighton thanks to Kai Havertz’s opener, but a red card for Declan Rice changed the dynamic of the game. A second-half strike from Joao Pedro ensured a share of the spoils.

Arsenal know all too well that every point counts having gone so close to winning the Premier League title in the last two campaigns, only to be snared by Manchester City. The international break will give Arteta an opportunity to further work with those in his squad who’ve not been called up by their respective countries.

One of those being summer signing Raheem Sterling. The 29-year-old is no stranger to Arteta, having spent three-and-a-half years together at Manchester City.

The Gunners’ style of play is not too dissimilar to that of Pep Guardiola’s side, so it should not take too long for Sterling to get up to speed, despite spending the last 12 months at Chelsea.

With a North London derby on the horizon, followed by a trip to Manchester City, not to mention a Carabao Cup clash with Bolton and a Champions League tie with Atalanta crammed somewhere in between, Arteta will have to make use of the full squad at his disposal.

So how can he get Sterling into the side and up to speed quickly? One suggestion involves shuffling the pack.

David Raya has made an impressive start to the season, as have Ben White, William Saliba, Gabriel Magalhaes and Jurrien Timber, so it makes little sense to change a solid base, but with the latter of the defensive quartet forced off with injury against Brighton, Riccardo Calafiori will no doubt come in from the off in the fortnight that follows the international break. If Timber’s injury isn’t as bad as first suspected, Arteta should stick with the aforementioned defensive base against Spurs.

The suspension to Rice and injury to Mikel Merino means Arteta will have to rethink his midfield plan ahead of an important run of fixtures.

Thomas Partey and Martin Odegaard will likely start against Spurs and Arteta must toy with the decision to bring in a like for like midfielder, someone like Jorginho, or opt for a midfield wildcard option. Allow me to explain.

Havertz has started the season in fine form with two goals and one assist to his name, and make no mistake, we’re not suggesting dropping him from the side, simply moving him into a deeper midfield role. He may not offer as much defensive cover as Rice, but he’ll be able to add a goal threat into the midfield three and impressed there against Bayer Leverkusen and Liverpool in pre-season.

That would create a space in the side up top for Arteta to repeat a well versed Guardiola trick. While it’s fair to say a lot of Sterling’s best work comes from the wide area of the pitch, he played a number of games up front for Manchester City, with his Gunners team- mate Gabriel Jesus shifted out onto the left.

We won’t be able to see an exact repeat of that tactic just yet, given Jesus’ absence through injury, but it’s an option for the Gunners moving forward. The Gunners forward should be back in contention to face their North London rivals, but they’ll want to tread carefully given his recent injury woes.

Bukayo Saka is the first name on the team-sheet for Arteta, with either Leandro Trossard and Gabriel Martinelli fighting it out to feature on that left-hand side of the pitch, should the Gunners’ boss decide to think out of the box. The Brazilian’s pace, alongside both Saka and Sterling, would cause real problems for Spurs’ back line.

Ange Postecoglou’s side have been caught out a number of times when playing a high and aggressive defensive line, you need just look at Alexander Isak’s winner for Newcastle last weekend to see a prime example of this.

Strongest Arsenal XI: Raya; White, Saliba, Gabriel, Calafiori; Odegaard, Partey, Havertz; Saka, Sterling, Martinelli.