Arsenal star at risk of Champions League ban as Mikel Arteta faces huge Girona decision

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Arsenal head to Girona on a high after a Riccardo Calafiori winner earned three points at Molineux against all the odds.

Arsenal have been boosted by the return of Martin Odegaard and Mikel Merino to training following illnesses that kept the midfield duo from featuring in the last Premier League match.

Mikel Arteta’s side know that just a point will be enough from the game to ensure automatic qualification into the last-16.

With this in mind, it is expected that Arteta may rotate his side, Kai Havertz looked exhausted at the end of the Wolves game and Myles Lewis-Skelly and William Saliba have only just returned from injury.

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Gabriel Martinelli one yellow card away from Champions League suspension

One selection dilemma that faces Arteta ahead of the Champions League clash is whether to risk winger Gabriel Martinelli.

The Brazilian picked up cautions earlier on in the competition against Monaco and Shakhtar during wins at the Emirates Stadium, meaning he stands on two bookings.

New Champions League rules state a player becomes suspended after three bookings and then misses a further match for every two cautions picked up after the initial suspension.

Martinelli is on the threshold of a suspension and would therefore potentially miss a vital first leg of a last-16 clash, where his pace and attacking threat would be sorely missed.

Martinelli struggling to find his consistent best form for Arsenal this season

Excellent recent performance against Aston Villa and Dinamo Zagreb have shown signs that the Brazilian is getting back to his scintillating best.

Fans were divided over his performance against Wolves, where Martinelli struggled to get the better of defender Emmanuel Agbadou but did work hard in his defensive duties upon the side going down to ten men.

In his 32 appearances this season, Martinelli has scored seven goals and contributed three assists, meaning he is just one goal away from eclipsing his tally from the whole of last season.

With attacking options already limited, Arteta will not want to lose another to suspension so would be wise to keep Martinelli away from any potential dangers in the tie at Girona.