Football pundit Paul Merson is convinced that Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta will pick Jorginho ahead of Declan Rice for Sunday’s Premier League clash vs Manchester City.
The North London outfit will face arguably their toughest game of the season when they lock heads with the reigning champions.
Hence, they can’t afford to experiment with their starting XI. Arteta will field his best players, and according to Merson, the Spaniard might go hard on one midfielder who remains suspended after a red card incident against Brighton and Hove Albion.
The Gunners are already without Mikel Merino and Martin Odegaard. Rice’s absence was a huge loss, but they managed to get a good result in the North London derby, followed by a hard-fought victory vs Atalanta.
The 25-year-old is finally back in the dugout after serving a one game ban. Although the fans expect him to be a definite starter, Merson doesn’t feel the same way.
The former Premier League star believes that Arteta will pick Jorginho over Rice tomorrow. While writing a column for Sportskeeda, he said: “I have a strong feeling Jorginho will play this game despite Declan Rice returning from his suspension. With Kai Havertz in midfield the other day, it really helped both Thomas Partey and Jorginho.”
“One thing Jorginho does really well is, he keeps the ball. During the 1-0 win at Emirates last season, City could not touch him, he was just too good.”
Jorginho fared well against Tottenham Hotspur, controlled the tempo of the game, and maintained possession in the middle. However, we believe that Merson has given an unpopular opinion by keeping Rice on the bench.
The Englishman has a good record vs Man City. He was instrumental in helping Arteta’s side secure all three points in their precious league encounters.
Last season, Declan Rice had a 90% passing accuracy and won possession four times vs Manchester City. He was a warrior at the back, winning four duels and making three interceptions.
Declan Rice’s game by numbers vs. Man City:
90% pass accuracy
57 touches
4 duels won
4x possession won
3 tackles
3 interceptions
2 chances created
1 clearance off the line
0 fouls committedTHIS is why they signed him. 💪#ARSMCI pic.twitter.com/uNHxJFj440
— Squawka Live (@Squawka_Live) October 8, 2023
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We can see Jorginho replace Thomas Partey and function alongside the former West Ham star. The Ghanian star didn’t meet the standards expected from him in the UCL tie with Atalanta. It will be interesting to see who the manager chooses to play in his starting lineup vs Man City on Sunday.
