It remains to be seen whether Declan Rice will be in the Arsenal team or squad for this visit to the London Stadium, with the midfielder assured of a warm reception if he takes to the field for the Gunners. The England man was outstanding for West Ham and helped them win the Europa Conference League last term, with the player then completing a big money transfer.
Mikel Arteta’s side are favourites to land a victory in this midweek encounter and reach the last eight of the competition, although much will depend on team selection. It’s fair to say that the squad size has increased and there was a fairly strong side that was fielded away to Brentford in the previous round where the north London team won by a 1-0 scoreline.
Gabriel, Emil Smith Rowe, Jorginho and Kai Havertz lined up against the Bees to help their team achieve that success, with the bench being graced by the likes of Oleksandr Zinchenko and Martin Odegaard. Similarly, West Ham were able to edge out Lincoln in the previous round where a strong team was fielded.
The Hammers will hope that a fantastic atmosphere at the London Stadium is able to propel the team to new heights, with both teams scoring set to be on the cards. With both teams featuring in European competition, there could be plenty of squad rotation although we think that Arsenal might be worth opposing at the prices and perhaps it’s worth looking at an Asian Handicap selection.