"Then leave it as it is" - Gary Neville names one change Arsenal must make in starting XI vs Manchester City
Gary Neville believes Declan Rice coming in for Jorginho should be the only change Mikel Arteta makes to Arsenal's starting XI for the clash against Manchester City on Sunday, September 22. The former Manchester United full-back added that the rest of the lineup should remain unchanged as they did the job against Tottenham Hotspur.
Speaking on his podcast, Neville stated that Arteta is no longer experimenting and is sticking to his plans. He added that the manager is confident in his team and has found stability in the side. He said (via Metro):
"I think he [Rice] will come in just for Joginho and then leave it as it is. I think Trossard did well in that role – the number 10 – so I don't think he'll change that. I think he'll keep it simple. I don't think Mikel Arteta is doing anything nowadays that is surprising us and I say that in a positive sense and a complimentary sense."
"He's got such confidence in his own team and how they play he doesn't need to try and think of fancy different systems or shocking anybody with the team selection. He's got stability. When you've got stability and an 11 that works together well, and you can just change one or two, then there is no need to do anything clever," Neville said.
Arsenal pulled off a 1-0 win over Tottenham away from home in the North London derby on Sunday, September 15. The Gunners are second in the league table and are chasing Manchester City once again.
Before their Premier League clash against City, the Gunners will face Atalanta in their UEFA Champions League opener on Thursday, September 19.
Gary Neville talks about Mikel Arteta not rotating at Arsenal
Gary Neville believes Mikel Arteta won't make multiple changes to his Arsenal side for the match against Atalanta. He stated that the likes of Gabriel Jesus and Raheem Sterling could start on Thursday but could see a lot of starting XI keeping their place as the manager hardly makes big changes.
Neville said:
"You can trust the 12 or 13 players that are his best players. He might bring in [Gabriel] Jesus and [Raheem] Sterling on Thursday night but I don't think he will be doing mass rotation. You can't afford to do that and I don't think you should do that. You have to trust that these players are capable physically of handling a Sunday-Thursday-Sunday [schedule]."
Arsenal face Manchester City on Sunday and will be eyeing the top spot in the league with a win against Pep Guardiola's side.