What next for Arsenal's midfield?
- Published
Arsenal head into this international break with two wins and a draw and a solid start to the Premier League season, but there is still a feeling they could have done better.
The red card for Declan Rice was a big factor against Brighton even though they had chances to win the game themselves with Kai Havertz and Bukayo Saka late on.
However, the real question that Mikel Arteta will have to answer now is what he will do with his midfield options.
Rice now misses the north London derby, which is a big blow. Not withstanding the rivalry, Arsenal will feel they have to win to keep pressure on Manchester City in the title race.
They will also be without new signing Mikel Merino, after the shoulder injury picked up in his first training session will see him out for a few weeks.
He will be another real miss, given he is a player brought in for his excellence at winning duels and his physicality, especially in a derby match.
That match against Spurs also starts a really busy seven days with matches in the Carabao Cup, the first game in the Champions League before a huge clash away at City.
Arteta will look at Jorginho and Thomas Partey to carry the load, particularly in the Spurs match but he may be forced to get creative to find a solution to get Arsenal and their midfield through those tough matches.
