Arsenal travel to Portman Road to face Premier League side Ipswich Town in the third round of the Carabao Cup. This is the Gunners’ first match in the competition this season. The Tractor Boys downed a struggling Leicester City side last month to advance. Oddly enough, Arsenal haven’t won the League Cup in more than 30 years.
While that particular bit of history won’t affect Mikel Arteta’s approach to the match, at this point, we can safely say that the Arsenal manager wants to win every trophy available
to the club. You aren’t going to see him deploy a heavily rotated lineup as a write-off.
Nor should he. Arsenal have a deep roster and part of the challenge with having that much depth is finding minutes for everybody to stay sharp. Players like Viktor Gyokeres and Noni Madueke have not played much this season. Both Mikel Merino and Martin Zubimendi have been regular subs but have been limited to 20-30 minute stints after being the latest returning players from the World Cup (along with David Raya). All of those guys, along with Ebere Eze, are strong players who will be needed in a number of key moments this season. It’s important they’re ready to go when the time comes. They’ve got to play to be ready.
On the other side of the pitch, you’d expect Gary O’Neil to deploy as close to a full-strength lineup as possible, particularly with just the upcoming weekend’s fixture before an international break. The cup competitions are where the lesser Premier League sides hope to do something special each season. Even when you don’t put together a deep run, a marquee victory (or even a strong performance against a top side) can build confidence and momentum.
New signing Julio Enciso (you know him from his Brighton days, a half-season loan to Ipswich two years ago when they were in the PL, and perhaps from Paraguay at the World Cup) is off to a strong start this season. Ghanaian international Abdul Fatawu, who signed in the summer from Leicester City, leads the team in chance creation. Left back Leif Davis, who put up excellent attacking numbers in Ipswich’s seasons in the Championship but struggled two years ago when they were in the Prem, has three goal involvements in four appearances this season.
You may not see Ipswich striker Emersonn, yet another who joined the club this summer when they were promoted, because he’s carrying a minor knock. Ipswich will also be without midfielder Jack Taylor.
Jurrien Timber returned to the Arsenal squad over the weekend, so, like clockwork, Ben White picked up a problem. The 28-year old right back was subbed off minutes into the second half after pulling up with what looked to be a groin issue. He hasn’t trained since Saturday’s match, so there is basically no chance he’s available today. The question is whether the problem is a serious one and how long it will keep him out. The Gunners are fortunate in that the international break starts after this weekend, so White has time to recover. Were I Mikel Arteta, given how thin his squad is on the right side of defense with Ben White out, I’d consider giving Jurrien Timber the night off and trotting out Marli Salmon. William Saliba is still out long term. Cristhian Mosquera continues to miss time with the supposedly minor hamstring issue that forced him off against Aston Villa.
Lineups will be posted when available.
WHO: Arsenal at Ipswich Town
WHAT: Carabao Cup 3rd Round
WHERE: Portman Road, Ipswich
WHEN: Tuesday, September 15th, 12:00pm PT | 3:00 pm ET | 8:00pm GMT
HOW TO WATCH: Streaming live on Paramount+
For all your international streaming needs, check LiveSoccerTV.com. Please do not share or discuss links to illegal streams here.
Engage with The Short Fuse’s match threads from your phone with the new SB Nation app. Commenting and interacting with your communities is easier than ever before with the Game Chat feature. The app is available currently in the U.S. on iOS and Android devices.
