Blue chews-daze: Toughest test so far this season both…

…in terms of opposition & venue as well as heading into such a game without one of our crucial components.

v Arsenal

Emirates Stadium

Predicted line-up, subs and outcome:

(Number correct from the starting line-up in the last game: 7/11).

A very fluid 4-2-3-1 / 4-3-3:

____________________Haaland____________________

__Doku________________________________Foden___

____________________Alvarez____________________

_____________Silva____________Lewis_____________

Gvardiol__________________________________Walker

____________Dias_______________Akanji___________

____________________Ederson____________________

Subs: Carson, Ortega, Gomez, Ake, Phillips, Kovacic, Nunes, Bobb & Grealish.

A slight shift in formation - I’m going bold by suggesting that Pep will be inventive in midfield for this one, as well as possibly-having read my last blog-posting 😂.

Ederson in-between ‘the sticks’.

A back-4 of Josko, Ruben, Manuel & Kyle.

“Inventive in midfield”, I say. Well, with no Rodders once again and with both players having good / very good performances last Wednesday, as well as the skills to perform this role; I think we might see the very versatile pair of Bernardo & Rico in a twin-axis partnership as cover for the suspended Spaniard; with each capable also of breaking formation and joining the attack. Both have the energy levels for it too; despite both having played all or most of our last match in Germany 4 days earlier.

In front of the defensive duo I’m going for ‘a 3’ who can all switch themselves around if required; that being Jeremy, in-form Julian & Phil.

Erling up front hoping to add to his 8 goals and 1 assist in 7 league games.

Scott & Stefan are the back-up keepers on the bench; Sergio & Nathan are just two defensive replacement options available in ‘the 9’ if I’m correct with my starting 11. Kalvin, Mateo, Matheus, Oscar & Jack provide both a wealth of experience & talent as midfielders & wingers waiting to come on.

Notable absences:

- John Stones – Despite travelling with the squad last Wednesday and being on the bench in midweek, the England international is deemed still not ready to be part of Sunday’s squad.

- Kevin De Bruyne – Some good news! Kev is apparently training alone now and then seeing the physios after each & every session. Hopes are that The Belgium international is ahead of his initial expected return of December / January. 👍🏼

- Rodri – Serving the last of his 3-match suspension and, apparently, has been allowed a little holiday. I think I might try a little violent conduct at work; get suspended from my duties and see if my employer will pack me off abroad somewhere for a little R&R…

Do I agree with Pep’s (predicted) line-up?

Yeah, I’d definitely endorse that.

Result? It’s a toughie for sure. Where we’ve lost 1 in the league our hosts are yet to be beaten and although we’ve scored 2 more league goals than our hosts and conceded 1 less; still, 15 “for” and 6 “against” in 7 games is the most impressive record we’ve come up against this season…and we’re on ‘their patch’.

They did take a hit in Europe in midweek and there are some doubts about Bukayo Saka, who is suffering with muscular issues / knocks at the moment - I’ll take any news like that as we head into this very difficult & crucial, early-season game without ‘our Rodders’. But they’re a side packed with huge talent besides Saka, of course, and they’ve been pretty impressive & devastating for the most part, aside from last Tuesday night. That’s another thing, they’ve also had a full-extra day’s rest / preparation time over us.

As for us, we’re in good shape and we bounced back well following two, back-to-back defeats in two different competitions. All things considered; I’m going for a draw.

Last season’s, corresponding pre-match prediction and result:

Prediction: Draw

Result: Won - 🤞 for the SECOND time in two season for the same prediction AND outcome at the Emirates…

(Pre-match blog posting from that game)

Expected weather conditions during the game: WOW! Is it really 7^th October in England? 73 / 75F (23 / 24C in new money) with glorious, unbroken sunshine is the forecast for match day; a day that sits right in the middle of a forecasted weeks’ worth of pretty much the same in the North London region. It’s not bad ‘up norf’ during that same period either. A slight southerly breeze wafts over the area to help convince fans that they’ve been magically transported abroad to some coastal resort. Even without a sure-to-be-very-hot game atmosphere, that low-to-mid 70s temperature is more likely to be closer to 80F inside the ground. Take your shades and enjoy Blues!