The late Saturday Premier League fixture sees Arsenal travel to the East Midlands to face Leicester City at the King Power Stadium.
Leicester could not have picked a better time to play Arsenal. The Foxes are currently undefeated at home in the league and are playing with so much confidence.
On the other hand, the Gunners have only won once away from home so far in the league and are in disarray behind the scenes.
Leicester have started this season sensationally, currently sitting in third place, two points off champions Manchester City.
Due to Manchester United, Arsenal and Tottenham all struggling, many have touted Leicester to finish in the top four this season.
The success of Leicester is in stark contrast to Arsenal. Arsenal fans have clearly voiced their disapproval of how their side is performing and have questioned numerous calls made by Unai Emery.
However, despite all the raucous, Arsenal still sit in fifth position and are still in contention for a top four finish.
Arsenal do have the quality to finish in the top four, but players are currently short of confidence. No doubt a win against a very strong Leicester side can definitely help momentum swing in Arsenal’s favour and help to ignite their Premier League campaign.
We look at four key battles to keep a close eye on for the fixture…
Brendan Rodgers vs Unai Emery
Rodgers has created one of the most balanced teams in all the league. From the goalkeeper to the striker, Leicester look strong in every inch of the pitch and crucially, all show a desire to want to perform well for their manager and club.
In addition, Rodgers has placed his faith in his young players and they playing at full confidence and showing no fear.
Despite the differences in results, it can be argued that Rodgers and Emery have a similar managerial philosophy.
Both managers like to play possession football and like their sides to dominate the opposition with quick passes. However, the difference here is that Emery’s Arsenal are very short of confidence, so it is difficult to string passess together or to play with authority. Due to this, Rodgers has an opportunity to exploit the lack of confidence in the Arsenal camp and if Leicester can find their rhythm quickly, the scoreline could look ugly for Arsenal.
Jamie Vardy vs David Luiz
The current Premier League top scorer with ten goals in eleven games, Vardy has found his ruthless touch again. Aggressive and quick, Vardy is a nightmare to defend against, constantly trying to get in behind and will pounce on any mistake that the opposition make. Vardy only thrives when he has the ability of his midfield to pick a pass and unlock the opposition defence.
Luckily for him, this Leicester midfield is full of technicians who find passess for fun. All this makes David Luiz’s job very difficult. The Brazilian is known to be erratic and ill disciplined, meaning that Vardy’s aggressive nature might well draw Luiz into making a silly mistake or a rash challenge.
Çağlar Söyüncü vs Alexandre Lacazette
The Turkish centre-half got off to a torrid start for Leicester towards the end of last season, however this season he has been absolutely phenomenal.
The 22-year-old has come in to replace Harry Maguire, but this has not fazed him one bit as he has been an almighty presence at the back for the Foxes. Strong, fast and good on the ball, Söyüncü is the perfect modern centre-half and is in electric form.
This all makes Lacazette’s task even more daunting, as the French striker really needs to start scoring for his side. Lacazette will look to hold the ball up for his teammates to try to link the play, but this job will be difficult as the bustling Söyüncü will fight for every ball and be aggressive whenever Lacazette is in possession.
Youri Tielemans vs Lucas Torreira
The Belgian midfielder was dubbed one of Europe’s biggest talents when he was at Anderlecht and his time in the Premier League with Leicester has justified those claims.
Tielemans is calm and assured on the ball, bringing stability in the center of the park. In addition, he has the ability to carry the ball forward and can find a pass from anywhere on the field, meaning he is the catalyst for attacks for his side.
Arsenal’s Torreira could come back into the side and may have his hands full against the impressive Tielemans. If he can keep him quiet, then the Gunners may have a chance of coming away from the King Power with something.