Emile Smith Rowe dropped, £12m player starts… Predicted Arsenal XI vs Liverpool

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Arsenal take on Liverpool in the Premier League tomorrow and here’s our predicted XI for the game.

The Gunners are fighting to stay alive in the title race. Yes, one result will decide nothing, but a loss tomorrow will push Liverpool eight points ahead of us. Mikel Arteta will not want that to happen.

Predicted Arsenal XI vs Liverpool

Arsenal have faced Liverpool twice already this season.

We drew 1-1 in the reverse fixture at Anfield and then suffered a 2-0 defeat there in the FA Cup. A win tomorrow at the Emirates will even things up and make the Premier League title race much more interesting.

David Raya will start in goal as usual, and the Spaniard has looked pretty good recently. His shaky start in an Arsenal shirt seems to be behind him now.

In front of Raya, we expect Mikel Arteta to go with our usual back four of Ben White, William Saliba, Gabriel Magalhaes and Oleksandr Zinchenko. All of them need to have a solid game.

In midfield, Declan Rice will start, but we think Emile Smith Rowe will be benched. The Englishman had a solid game last time out, but we just think Jorginho is a better fit against Liverpool.

The £12 million man is hugely experienced. We will need his composure on the ball and ability to control the game against the Reds tomorrow.

Martin Odegaard will be our lone attacking midfielder behind our regular front three of Gabriel Martinelli, Gabriel Jesus and of course, Bukayo Saka.

Predicted Arsenal XI vs Liverpool: Raya, White, Saliba, Gabriel, Zinchenko, Jorginho, Rice, Odegaard, Martinelli, Jesus, Saka

Jorginho impressed last time vs Liverpool

Jorginho may not be as much of a fan favourite as Emile Smith Rowe, but the Italian can make a difference in games against the big sides.

The former Chelsea man was excellent in our win against Manchester City earlier this season, and even though we lost at Liverpool in the FA Cup, we thought he had a really good game.

In 120 minutes on the pitch that night, Jorginho had 76 touches of the ball and completed 47 of his 55 attempted passes, maintaining a healthy 85 per cent passing accuracy.

He also won 10 ground duels, made three clearances, three tackles and four interceptions. He was dribbled past just twice in the entire game as well (SofaScore).

We love Smith Rowe, but tomorrow’s game is far more suited for Jorginho to come in.