Arteta makes 4 big changes | Predicted Arsenal XI vs Bayer Leverkusen as £6m player starts

Arsenal host Bayer Leverkusen in the second leg of the Champions League round of 16 tie tonight.

The Gunners played out a 1-1 draw in the first leg at the BayArena, but they were far from convincing and required a late penalty to avoid a defeat.

The club need a much better showing at the Emirates Stadium to beat Leverkusen and progress to the last eight of the elite European competition.

Ahead of the game, manager Mikel Arteta has already ruled out a couple of players.

Martin Odegaard and Jurrien Timber won’t be available for the encounter alongside Mikel Merino, who has been a long-term injury absentee.

Leandro Trossard is back in the mix after a minor injury, but may not make the starting XI.

There could be four changes to the starting line-up from the 2-0 Premier League win over Everton.

Formation: 4-3-3

Predicted Line-up:

David Raya has been a regular between the sticks in the Premier League and Champions League matches for the Gunners. He only missed the dead rubber against Kairat Almaty. The Spaniard is guaranteed to start in goal ahead of Kepa Arrizabalaga.

The backline could witness a couple of changes from the dramatic 2-0 win over Everton on Saturday. With Timber ruled out, Cristhian Mosquera looks a front-runner to start at right-back. The Spaniard was preferred over Ben White for the position off the bench against the Toffees, and we expect something similar tonight.

William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes are nailed-on starters in the heart of the defence for the Gunners, but there could be a switch at left-back. Piero Hincapie has been Arteta’s go-to man in the position in 2026 ahead of Riccardo Calafiori and Myles Lewis-Skelly. Calafiori had a good outing against Everton and made a sublime scorpion kick block to deny Everton from scoring.

Despite this, Hincapie should be reinstated in the left-back role. The Leverkusen loanee has been by far the most consistent solution for the Gunners. He came off the bench to provide the assist for Viktor Gyokeres’ late winner and could be preferred to start against his parent club.

In midfield, no changes are on the cards. Martin Zubimendi should line up as the defensive midfielder. Declan Rice will occupy the number eight position as usual, with Eberechi Eze operating as the attacking midfielder. Kai Havertz could start from the bench against his former employers.

Havertz got the nod upfront ahead of Viktor Gyokeres against Everton. He was unlucky not to win a penalty, but did not provide much of an attacking threat after that. Gyokeres came off the bench and made a huge difference with the winning goal. The Swede also made a crucial clearance in the dying seconds before Max Dowman hit the headlines with his sublime solo goal.

Gyokeres looks poised to lead the line for the Gunners. Bukayo Saka has not been in the best of form, but the standing captain should be an assured starter on the right wing. Noni Madueke has been impressive as a right winger, but does not possess the same threat from the opposite flank. We fancy Gabriel Martinelli to get the nod after his fine Everton cameo. He bagged an assist for Dowman.

The £6 million signing has been Arsenal’s best attacking outlet in Europe this campaign. The 24-year-old has 16 goal contributions in all competitions with seven of those coming in the Champions League. With Trossard having just returned to training after a minor injury, Martinelli could be reinstated on the left wing ahead of Madueke against Kasper Hjulmand’s side.

How Arsenal could line up vs Bayer Leverkusen

Stats from Transfermarkt.com

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