Arsenal will be looking to boost their chances of a top-four finish by beating Brentford on Saturday afternoon.
Mikel Arteta’s men were not in action last weekend as their scheduled opponents Chelsea took part in the Club World Cup. It was still a good weekend for the Gunners, though, with top-four rivals West Ham, Manchester United, and Tottenham all failing to win their respective matches.
If Arsenal is to qualify for the Champions League this season, they will need to show consistency between now and the end of the campaign. They failed to break down a dogged Burnley team in their last encounter at the Emirates Stadium, and Arteta will hope to see more guile and craft from his side on this occasion.
![[FILE] Liverpool’s Egyptian midfielder Mohamed Salah (L) runs with the ball as Arsenal’s Brazilian defender Gabriel closes in during the English Premier League football match between Arsenal and Liverpool at the Emirates Stadium in London. (Photo by Catherine Ivill / POOL / AFP)](https://www.afriupdate.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/000_97B779-scaled-e1703231851386-120x86.jpg "Liverpool host Arsenal in battle for Premier League Christmas No. 1 2")
A 0-0 draw with Crystal Palace last time out stopped the rot for Brentford after a run of five consecutive defeats. The Bees are still looking nervously over their shoulders, though, with a run of just one win in their last nine outings leaving them only seven points clear of the bottom three. That is still a sizable enough margin for now, but Brentford needs to start winning again in order to start breathing a little more easily.
Arsenal will have to make do without Gabriel Martinelli, who will serve a ban after his controversial sending-off against Wolves. Takehiro Tomiyasu could return to the starting XI after a spell on the sidelines with a calf issue, but Cedric Soares will continue at right-back if the Japan international is not cleared to play.
Brentford will be unable to call upon the services of Mathias Jorgensen, Tarique Fosu, and Julian Janvier for the short trip across the capital. Ivan Toney could return to the starting XI, while Christian Eriksen has an outside chance of being named among the substitutes.
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