Arsenal will be looking to book their place in the fourth round of the FA Cup. They face Newcastle at Emirates tonight. The Gunners will reach the match off the back of three consecutive Premier League wins. While during a poor streak, Newcastle are winless in their last six matches in all competitions.
It has been a good couple of weeks for Arsenal as they have beaten Chelsea, Brighton & Hove Albion, and West Bromwich Albion in their last three league fixtures. They have now climbed to 11th place in the table. Arteta’s side now has three games in a row at Emirates, welcoming Crystal Palace and Newcastle in their next two league matches.
They’ll travel to Southampton on January 26. Newcastle, meanwhile, are six-time FA Cup champions but have not won the trophy since1955. However, before losing to Man City, the Magpies reached the quarter-finals of last season’s competition. In the third round of the FA Cup, clubs across England are required to make wholesale adjustments to their normal starting XIs. And it would not be a surprise to see Steve Bruce taking similar action.
The Gunners have recorded four straight wins over Newcastle in the league. But this weekend’s clash will be the first time that the two teams have met in the FA Cup since January 2008. London club recorded a 3-0 victory to advance to the fifth round of the competition then.
Thomas Partey could star, with the midfielder recovering from a thigh problem. Gabriel Magalhaes may also be available. But Arteta would need to evaluate the health of the center-back as he has only recently recovered from the coronavirus. Allan Saint-Maximin and Ryan Fraser are both unavailable for Newcastle, though Jamaal Lascelles remains in enormous doubt as he deals with the coronavirus effects.
Possible Starting Lineup:
Arsenal: Runarsson; Cedric, Gabriel, Luiz, Maitland-Niles; Partey, Ceballos; Martinelli, Willock, Pepe; Nketiah
Newcastle United: Dubravka; Manquillo, Fernandez, Clark, Dummett, Krafth; J Murphy, Shelvey, Hendrick, Almiron; Gayle
