With the season a fortnight away, Arsenal continue their preparations as they host Bayer Leverkusen at the Emirates Stadium for the first of their final two friendly games.
On one side Arsenal had a splendid campaign in the 2023-24 season where they just fell short of lifting the league title after 20 years, whereas Leverkusen travel to London having won the Bundesliga as Invincibles – without losing a single game the previous campaign. A battle of two childhood mates, now in the form of managers for their respective clubs of Mikel Arteta and Xabi Alonso prepare to lock horns and make this a competitive, yet entertaining watch.
Arsenal travelled to USA for their pre-season campaign having coming back to North London with a fair trade of balanced results – a win vs Manchester United, a draw vs Bournemouth and a loss against Liverpool. Lots of experiments, tactical tweaks and young prospects getting their minutes was the highlight of the overseas friendly the Gunners had.
Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen side travelled to France earlier last week as they drew 2-2 vs RC Lens. A game in which they took the lead twice but was cancelled out on both occasions. Bayer Leverkusen will be hosting Real Betis after their contest with the Gunners.
Only twice before have the two sides crossed paths in a competitive setting, meetings that came in the 2001-02 Champions League second group stage, where a 1-1 draw in Germany preceded a 4-1 win for Wenger’s Arsenal at Highbury.
A highly anticipated encounter at the Emirates Stadium is a game that will be taken with equal status to prove the progress being made under the lights off season.
When and Where?
Date: 7th August 2024, Wednesday.
Time: 6:00 PM BST
Venue: Emirates Stadium
Team News
Arsenal’s most recent signing from Bologna; Riccardo Calafiori will be in contention to get his unofficial debut for the Gunners although Arteta has hinted that he would be integrated slowly. Key players from the Euro 24’ namely Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice, William Saliba, Aaron Ramsdale and David Raya are all ack from their vacations and could be involved in the match.
Arsenal’s versatile defender Takehiro Tomiyasu and Kieran Tierney aren’t with the squad as they are managing injuries. Only two of Arsenal’s Hale End prospects – Ethan Nwaneri and Myles Lewis Skelly were seen training with the first team which hints their inclusion and also an experienced strong lineup to be forced vs Leverkusen.
Leverkusen are awaiting the return of full-backs Jeremie Frimpong and Alejandro Grimaldo from their post-Euro 2024 vacations. They will also be without midfielder Ezequiel Palacios as he underwent surgery on a knee injury at the start of the week.
Jonathan Tah is expected to feature against Arsenal despite the recent transfer rumours. New signing Terrier is expected to start after shining against RC Lens previously. However, the star of the show will be the return of former Arsenal midfielder Granit Xhaka who is going to return to his previous fortress.
Pre-Match Tactical Analysis
The end to the pre-season tour on USA soil and the league games beginning soon, it is expected that both clubs would like to lineup most of their key players whilst also essentially maintaining their minutes. The defeat to Liverpool previously for the Gunners served as a timely reminder of the challenges that lie ahead as they’d want to challenge Man City for the Premier League title.
Xabi Alonso returns to English soil after having an industrious career here as a player, now he returns to North London – a place which he mirrored the Invincibles’ success as a Leverkusen boss last season, replicating what Arsenal did almost two decades ago.
Arsenal have shown an intent of building out from the back – control and dominance in every phase of the pitch. The man-to-man high press, baiting of the press in build-up and areas to find central progression have been normal in order to capsulate any opposition. For Alonso’s side to take advantage of Arteta’s playstyle will need to show patience in build-up, wait for space to be created behind the lines and progress.
The quality and depth both squads bring to the table are unquestionably good and we could have a real tactical masterclass from both managers. Arsenal could have a slight edge in this fixture due to their familiarity of the Emirates Stadium – they’d look to regroup and make the most of their final two friendly games
Key Players
Kai Havertz
Arsenal’s main strike force leading from the front had a fantastic season in his debut campaign at Arsenal. Although he’s been used as an LCM/SS hybrid this pre-season in order to accommodate Jesus as a CF, he managed to score vs Liverpool after some great positioning. As much as Havertz looks imposing on the ball, his physical attributes make him a real danger man in set pieces on both halves of the pitch. Off-the-ball movements, late box crashing and clinical link-up play can be vividly expected from Kai Havertz vs Bayer Leverkusen.
Florian Wirtz
The German wonderkid has echoed his name on all fronts after his performances domestically for Leverkusen and Germany during the Euros. His resurgence after a lengthy period out with injury saw him come back as a new signing, threatful and creative with all his actions. Wirtz, often synonymized for his exceptional close control and dribbling skills can make things tricky for Arsenal. The ease he could get through tight spaces and hold the ball under pressurised situations can give the German side a big advantage.
Predicted Lineups
Arsenal predicted lineup vs Leverkusen: Hein; White, Timber, Gabriel, Zinchenko; Partey, Havertz, Odegaard; Martinelli, Jesus, Nelson.
Leverkusen predicted lineup vs Arsenal: Hradecky; Kossounou, Tah, Hincapie; Tella, Garcia, Xhaka, Belocian; Wirtz, Terrier; Boniface.
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