Arsenal have been on a good run of form recently, with a memorable victory against Manchester City at the Etihad and advancing to the next round of the FA Cup. The team must keep up their recent form with a victory against a struggling Villa outfit, which also gives the chance to rest some players.
Goalkeeper: Given his recent performances, and the fact that Wojciech Szczesny started in the FA Cup, it’s fair to assume that David Ospina will continue in the first-team. He has done an excellent job in this position thus far and hasn’t put a foot wrong. He deserves to continue in goal.
Right-Back: Hector Bellerin has been on fire recently and it’s the perfect time to give him the chance to cement a regular first-team spot in the team, ahead of Calum Chambers. The Spaniard was near-perfect during the game against Manchester City and should have a positive impact against Villa.
Centre-Back: This is the first area where Arsenal should, and can now afford to, shake things up. Laurent Koscielny’s problems this season have been a concern and the latest is that he still hasn’t shaken his achilles issues. Therefore, we can expect to see Gabriel Paulista come in for his debut alongside Per Mertesacker.
Usually, changes at the heart of defence are problematic but against a Villa side that has only a handful of goals this season, the defence should be able to suffice either way.
Left-Back: Kieran Gibbs is without a doubt the first choice left-back in the team and he could do with a start here. Although Nacho Monreal hasn’t been performing too badly, he isn’t as capable as Gibbs and the English defender needs more games under his belt in order to maximise his potential.
Central Midfield: Firstly, it has to be Francis Coquelin. It’s now difficult to imagine Arsenal playing positively without the French midfielder, who should just how could he was with a commanding victory against the Premier League champions. Starting him here would assure we avoid an upset.
Alongside Coquelin, I’d be inclined to go with Aaron Ramsey. We can afford not to play him, especially with Rosicky’s performances last weekend, but with the Welshman returning from injury we need to give him some game-time so that he has found his form again before some of the bigger games.
Right-Wing: Theo Walcott has been getting back to full fitness recently and scored last weekend in the FA Cup. The visit of Aston Villa gives Arsene Wenger the perfect match to give Walcott a full ninety minutes in the Premier League, in a game where he should be able to cause some damage.
Central-Attacker: Mesut Ozil, it really shouldn’t be questioned. Ozil has to start this weekend to continue his come-back from injury and he just isn’t as effective on the left. The same can be said for Santi Cazorla- but Ozil is one of the best in the world in a middle-forward position, so playing him out wide doesn’t make much sense.
Left-Wing: With the absence of Alexis Sanchez, Arsenal need to make a change here and should select Santi Cazorla. The Spanish maestro has been in stellar form in recent weeks, although this is has been through the centre, but he’s more effective on the left than Ozil is.
Striker: The absences of Danny Welbeck and Alexis Sanchez, added to the fact that Joel Campbell and Yaya Sanogo have now been shipped off on-loan, mean that the only real choice is Olivier Giroud. This is a game where Giroud should thrive- but crucially in my eyes, this is the sort of game where Arsenal can get ahead and the introduce Chuba Akpom for the final twenty minutes or so.