Thursday, December 19, 2024

Gunners look familiar: AC Milan v Arsenal – team news

Arsenal face AC Milan in the Europa League tonight, and go into the game in poor form. Arsene Wenger will be hoping his side can rediscover their mojo and keep the tie alive for the second leg at the Emirates next week.

Here are tonight’s official line-ups.

AC Milan: Donnarumma; Calabria, Bonucci, Romagnoli, Rodriguez; Kessie, Biglia, Bonaventura; Suso, Calhanoglu, Cutrone

Subs: Donnarumma, Silva, Borini, Zapata, Montolivio, Kalinic, Locatelli

Arsenal: Ospina, Chambers, Mustafi, Koscielny, Kolasinac, Ramsey, Xhaka, Wilshere, Mkhitaryan, Ozil, Welbeck

Subs: Cech, Holding, Maitland-Niles, Elneny, Iwobi, Nelson, Nketiah

Follow the game on the Arseblog live blog

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José+P

Redemption time

Maniac

Let’s start with not embarassing ourselves.

Easy tiger

Classic and realistic at the same time….?

Too Drunk To Be Offside

All the best to the team. Whip them real good.

iGooner

Redemption? More like humiliation beckoning

(But ill gladly eat my words if we win)

The Loon Ranger

2-0 up ATM

iGooner

Like i said, gladly eat my words 🙂 #COYG

Giovani

I’ve been watching the latest AC Milan games
and i gotta tell ya… it’s not gonna be easy to score a goal agains them
They have a really solid defense, but not so great attack
C.O.Y.G.

Easy tiger

That sounds ideally to beat this arsenal team.

Zyrth

That’s almost the same as us! Phew!
We’re only lousy in defense and attack.

Fletcher

Good luck. . Let’s do it

Sunil T

would have loved to have seen Nketiah start.. give us something different

VagabondPuppet

What does Elneny have to do to get a start?

bergkamp\'s toe

be better at football.

Mayor McCheese

Push Xhaka down a flight of stairs, I’d imagine.

Faisal Narrage

Give away passes and make clumsy fouls, it seems.

Gudang Pelor

Do you think he had said something to wenger about this whole slump situation and now he’s the new joel campbell?

Voldermort

Xhaka would have to leave for 3 quid. Jack not sign a new contract other than that he will be a regular soon

Jdog

Not a single one of those players is in form for arsenal. We have a center back playing wing back, 2 central defenders who can’t defend, a midfield who cant be arsed to defend or attack it seems, and an attack who can’t score goals. Also a manager who will do nothing to influence the game. Cant see anything other than a heavy defeat and yet another capitulation considering the players don’t have the character belief or drive to prove anyone wrong.

A Gorilla

Wow Jdog, bad day at work was it?

Igor Stepanovs

Wilshere and Ramsey in midfield together. Well, we aren’t winning then..

Honest gooner

Worst subs bench ive seen

Ponsonby+gooner

Have to agree. That is literally one of the thinnest looking benches I can remember.

Kwame Ampadu Down

Nothing wrong with playing both Wilshere & Ramsey. The problem is playing both & not playing a DM….but you could say the same about ANY combination of our midfielders.
Hoping for the best but hard to be optimistic looking at that line up.

Moses

Agreed, the problem is them hardly ever playing together due to injury & thus not having a chance to build a relationship. It may or may not work but the two most promising midfielders of recent years have been stop start stop and never had much of a chance…

Glasgow Gooner

Are we playing a 5 man midfield with Ozil on the left and GX behind AR & JW

Mayor McCheese

We aren’t playing a midfield.

Bendtnerschristmastree

What is this thing you call midfield?

Jdog

Also, why not be a bit brave and start nketiah and Nelson as part of the front 3? What’s the worst thing that can happen? At least it introduces a bit of hunger into the team and gives something interesting to the fans. The worst case scenario is they get tonked…which will likely happen anyway.

Christopher Wreh

The game’s not even started yet mate – chill out

btw

We have no width whatsoever. Expect everyone clustered in the middle while Welbeck drifts out wide.

alek

Do not lose it for fucks sake !

Jack4343

Hope we find some way to get some good form back. Welbeck needs to panic them early.

Fireman Sam

Has Welbeck ever panicked anyone apart from himself?

Christopher Wreh

COME ON ARSENAL.

Dare we dream?

Petits Handbag

Dream that we’ll win a last 16 Europa League tie? The real Christopher Wreh would dream higher than that.

Christopher Wreh

Perhaps not the most applicable choice of phrase I admit. Something closer to ‘I bloody hope we win’ would have been better…

The Goon of Valencia

Looks promising if Donnarumma is in goal & on the bench!

The Goon of Valencia

& we got the Hoyte’s!…

alek

there’s three of them …and Allaline 🙂

Ted E.

It’s the older one, Antonio, sitting on the bench for his 9 year younger brother. Antonio is 27, Gianluigi just turned 19.

Ponsonby+gooner

Hit the middle one!

Miguel G

Quantum Donnarumma.

Mayor McCheese

That is a bit cocky of Milan to leave their goalkeeper on the bench. Gattuso: ‘we are resting him for the weekend’.

Frank

Donnarumma starting and on the bench? Impressive

A Gorilla

Hilarious that we’re in last 16 again, just praying to not lose so badly that we can’t make a game of it in the second leg. This time it’s in the Europa League though.

At least we can all thank Juve for doing the biz last night. Chiellini’s mug off was brilliant too, brought a smile to my face in these dark times

Ponsonby+gooner

“It’s the history of Tottenham”

Araj

How can Maitland-Niles be good enough to start at left-back on his weaker foot against the best player in the premier league this season (Salah) and not be good enough to get a single game at right back on his favored foot even when the squad has no other right backs.
There is no width in this team at all. There are 5 midfielder who all like to play centrally and the right back is a center back. Bad selection.

Faisal Narrage

I was hoping for something brave. Even though he didn’t work out, I respected Arsenal for starting Sanogo against Bayern and when he did the same to Iwobi and their unknown entity and youthful hunger adding an extra dynamism to the game. What I’m seeing is Wenger playing all the same players who have failed him over the season, with the same tactical set up that has been out problem most of the season (no width, no midfield function or protection, no direct dribbling, and no finishing with Welbeck). It may work out differently this time, and hopefully the players… Read more »

Fireman Sam

Team selection here scares the shit out of me. Ours I mean!

Tom Kennedy

Well, if it aign’t broke, then don’t fi…..oh

Indian Gooner

Why is Nelson not playing as the right back? Why Chambers? Nelson did a decent job in the group stages..

Greg

Time to see ozil and mky can’t play together again. Best part of 600k a week there

Martin

Ffs. Feel sorry for the the travelling gooners. No players accountable for how shit they’ve been playing. Will take a Miracle to get a decent result tonight.

Carl

Whats the definition of insanity again?

jon

Ramsey and Wilshire both in midfield is one too many. Play Mkht in midfield, Iwobi in front three.

IamsterdamGooner

Let’s roll them over with a clean sheet boys!
Just hoping here because I’m actually pretty much shitting myself tbh.
Pleeeease boys let’s put in a professional determined efficient 90 mins! Give it your fucking all!!! COYG!!!!! COME ON!!

Whyyyyyy!? Put us out of our misery, Arsene!

Mustafi!! Again? Come onnnn…. What does he have to do to be kept in the bench? He’s tried everything – sliding unnecessarily, being weak in the air, making bizzare choices of pressing rather than covering, losing possession among many others. Sigh! Pleaseee don’t fuck up today! Please

Luke Brown

Is this us going for broke? I would have expected a more balanced midfield, but I have to say, I’m not unhappy with this selection. Milan’s team, well, that’s the best eleven they have right now – and the one everybody expected Gattuso to pick. I hope our CB will nor lose sight of Cutrone in the box. Oh, and I hope that Arsene and the team have watched at least ONE Milan game on tape… which means they will be aware that Suso likes to cut inward from the right flank and curl the ball into the net with… Read more »

Alexit Micki Aubarsenal

Let us support the team

SantiSandler

Lot of experience in the lineup, let’s hope it pays dividends. If Xhaka and Wilshere can stay disciplined at base of midfield I think we can surprise people here. I’m probably way too optimistic but this is the first match I’ve been excited for in a while, COYG!

Faisal Narrage

/GRRROOOOOOOOOOAAAAAANSSSSSS

I can’t understand why a right-footed midfielder was considered a viable option to play at the unfamiliar left back against some of the best PL teams, yet steadfastly isn’t used in a more familiar right-back with his right foot.

Instead we’re going to play arguably our slowest CB on RB again, even though every time he’s played there he gets roasted.

Ramsey-Xhaka midfield? GROANS.

santori

They have Biglia to cover Kessie and Bonaventura going forward.

Ramsey and Granit will need to be discipline (not int heir DNA) to prevent Milan wandering into our box which is where they do most damage.

Out on our left, Jack will have to be aware to cover Kolasinac going forward because Suso has a great left foot. He will cut in and hit us.

Not convinced our team selection will cover our deficiencies or individual performances can cover their faults.

BUT lets go for it.

Come on Dannny, you only have to beat Donnaruma.

Joe Bloggs

Ramsey-Xhaka is such a long way from Petit-Vieria or even Coq-Cazoloa

PersonFace

Would have preferred AMN at right back with Chambers instead of Mustafi and Elneny as defensive mid with Ramsey and Jack as the two more advanced midfielders, but whatever, time to get behind the team and hope for the best. COYG.

santori

Chambers instead of Mustafi? You’re nuts.

But AMN for sure. We could do with a bit of pace right side.

Cahanoglu is a tricky player. Chambers needs to pay attention.

Lonely Lonesome

Our bench should strike .fear in the heart of Europe’s best. Sarcastination

AFC101

I’m a bit it disappointed really.

I thought Wenger was looking to use focus and pragmatism?
They didn’t even get on the subs bench!!!

Saywha

Woah. Donnarumma brothers at ACM. We are screwed.

Billy Bob

Should ditch chambers and xhaxa should make way for MAN and Elneny

ronnie

Its sad when we go into a Europa League game hoping not to get annihilated. The expectations and bar has dropped so much this season that playing a game against the 7th best of team of Italy has us quietly praying for a respectable scoreline. Oh well here’s to hope and belief that this team can put in a performance.

Teryima Adi

The Apocalypse Part 1

santori

I don’t think we are being pragmatic enough. My only guess is we are so abject at the moment that Wenger doesn’t evven dare rock the boat with too many changes. He is counting on improved individual performances. Hope that is good enough but we may get overwhelmed in midfield. They play Biglia at their base with FOUR mids in Suso and Cahanoglu who like to drop to collect and Kessie and Bonaventura who like to go forward and score from deeper roles on each side of Biglia. Will Ozil and Mhki have enough out putto put pressure on BIglia,… Read more »

Joe Bloggs

The lack of steel in the midfield is a constant worry – has Wenger not learnt his lesson. Playing El nenry instead of that waste of space Xhaka would be my choice.

Par nagle

We need Elton john as chaiman

santori

I’ll take Delia Smith…”Let be having it”

Par nagle

Wenger needs to find his magic hat again

steve

Pretty far off what i would have done, i didn’t even get the formation right lol.
Time to get behind the guys who are out there now though.

santori

Yes.

Hope for the best.

COYG

Thierry Bergkamp

A quick question before kick off, if you don’t mind.
Would you prefer to win the cup if it means Wenger stays or, not win it and he moves on?

Joe Bloggs

Loose it. I would be happy to finish 17th if it meant Wenger was on his bike.

santori

Win the bloody cup FFS

Win something and get back into CL. If it means bloody Wenger for another bloody final season, I’ll take the cup and back in CL.

The club’s success first.

Manager has one season left which is the worst scenario.

BUT lets just not lose today first.:P

Mpls

Win it and he leaves. Not getting into the rest as it’s a hypothetical binary choice and there’s no such thing.

ramgooner

Win it and he stays.

Hank1979

it will be interesting to see their young GK. a lot said about this young lad. some troubled times with his own fans but high hopes for this lad…we coukd do with a new keeper.

Arse-Head

With welbeck up top I doubt the lad will be very busy

yaya sanogoals

Donnarumma in the starting 11 and on the bench. What a legend

PeteyB

Since they have 2 Donnarummas I wonder if they might give us one for next season.

Trefusus

So lovely to have the “good” Arsenal turn up, at least so far. Keep it up! Come back with a clean sheet.

Chippys chip

Great result and performance by all. Hope.
Taxi for most of the above posters

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