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Focus shifts for a compelling top-flight matchup as league leaders the Gunners welcome rock-bottom Wolverhampton Wanderers to the Emirates Stadium.

Confirmed Sides

Arsenal have opted for three changes from the team that endured a narrow loss at Villa Park last weekend. William Saliba, the Swedish striker and Gabriel Martinelli are all included in the lineup. Martin Ødegaard and Mikel Merino drop to the bench, while the Italian defender is not involved. Saliba returns after sitting out five matches through injury.

Wolves also make three adjustments to their starting XI following being soundly beaten 4-1 at Molineux by Manchester United on Monday evening. The experienced full-back, the Brazilian midfielder and the South Korean forward come in. Ki-Jana Hoever and Arias drop to the substitutes, while Jean‐Ricner Bellegarde misses out altogether.

Starting Elevens

Arsenal: Raya, White, Saliba, Hincapie, Timber, Eze, Zubimendi, Rice, Saka, Gyokeres, Martinelli.
Substitutes: Arrizabalaga, Odegaard, Gabriel Jesus, Norgaard, Trossard, Madueke, Nwaneri, Merino, Lewis-Skelly.

Wolverhampton Wanderers: Johnstone, Mosquera, Agbadou, Toti Gomes, Doherty, Joao Gomes, Andre Trindade, Krejci, Wolfe, Larsen, Hwang.
Bench: Tchatchoua, Mane, Lopez, Hoever, Chirewa, Arokodare, Arias, Santiago Bueno, Jose Sa.

Match Official: Robert Jones
Video Assistant Referee: John Brooks

The Setup

Welcome! Because, look at this …

The standings tells a clear story. The hosts sit proudly at the summit of the table, while Wolves anchor the division.

… however, even though this will be the 42nd time the top side have taken on the team at the foot of the division – with 30 victories from 41, with seven tied games – who are responsible for two of the four all-time upsets? Why, Wolves, of course! So while the Arsenal manager will surely be anticipating another victory, the Wolves boss must know that long shots sometimes come off, and anything is possible. Kick-off is at 8pm GMT. It’s on!

^{(The other two last-over-first victories in the modern top-flight era are Oldham’s 1-0 win over Manchester United in March 1993, and Spurs – yeah, a surprising one - defeating Liverpool in November 2008.)}