Arsenal U18s take on Aston Villa U18s at London Colney this Saturday with the hosts looking to bounce back from their resounding 4-1 loss at Southampton U18s in their last match at this level.
However, there was a more positive result in midweek, when two goals from Alex Iwobi gave Arsenal a 2-0 win over Bayern Munich in the UEFA Youth League and continued their perfect record in that competition.
On the other hand, the young Gunners’ results from their opening ten games in the Premier Academy League have been a mixed bag to say the least. Having started the season impressively with three wins and ten points from their opening five games, only one win has followed since. Just as it was last season, the defence is still a major concern, having conceded 18 goals already.
Arsenal’s main selection issue will be who is given the nod to play up front. With Yassin Fortune representing France at the U17 World Cup in Chile, either summer signing Donyell Malen or Eddie Nketiah could start. The former notched against Leicester on his first league start and provided an assist for Alex Iwobi in the match against Bayern Munich, so will be favourite to start. However, Eddie Nketiah has five league goals this season so will likely play at some point, whether from the start or off the bench.
Another player who won’t feature for Arsenal is Christopher Willock. Along with the aforementioned Fortune, the winger is also at the U17 World Cup, and set up club mate Kaylen Hinds to score against Guinea in England’s opening game.
As for Aston Villa, they come into the game in need of a lift after back-to-back defeats against West Ham and Leicester. Aston Villa’s main threat will come from striker Callum O’Hare, who has six goals in his last six games at U18 level. Arsenal’s defence, so fragile of late, will need to be on top form to keep the striker quiet.
