Mikel Arteta has been urged to make a defensive switch ahead of Arsenal’s huge north London derby clash with Tottenham.
Arsenal’s surprising midweek draw against bottom-of-the-table Wolves has made the Premier League title race all of the more interesting.
And while the Gunners still have a five-point lead over Manchester City, they’ve played a game greater than Pep Guardiola’s side and face a possible banana skin away at arch-rivals Spurs on Sunday.
Spurs appointed Igor Tudor as caretaker manager until the top of the season and would love nothing more to not only downplay their relegation fears but dent Arsenal’s title hopes.
City, meanwhile, are riding high off 4 consecutive wins in all competitions, and will pile much more pressure on Arteta’s side with a victory over Newcastle United on Saturday.
Arsenal will likely be eager to get back to winning ways and dispel any growing nerves around their title probabilities, but Kieran Gibbs is one among many who’re barely concerned by Arsenal’s recent performances, particularly on the back.
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And the previous Gunners left-back urged Arteta to be proactive to deal with Arsenal’s problems, and suggested that he desires to see Jurrien Timber given a rest after a jaded display in midweek.
‘I believe if I were to select any holes in that, it will probably be, I feel like Jurrien Timbers played numerous football, and I believe he is perhaps due a rest,’ Gibbs told ESPN.
‘You’ve got Ben White waiting behind you, he’s perfectly capable, he knows how you can play at this level, and he’s done great for Arsenal since he signed. So possibly there’s that.
‘When it comes to where they’re lacking for the time being, you’ve gotten to say his goals conceded, I believe they’ve conceded eight goals to this point this yr, they usually’ve only conceded 18 goals in the entire season.
‘So it’s clear that that’s where the problem is for the time being, and we just don’t associate them with that due to this sort of back five, back six, with Rice in there, they only don’t concede many, and that’s where you’re seeing their numbers increase for the time being, with conceding goals.
‘So possibly there’s something that should be done there.’
And while Arsenal needs to be confident against an out-of-form Spurs side, Gibbs insisted his former side needed to be wary concerning the unpredictable nature of a derby-day clash.
‘It’s an excellent way for them to reply and perform,’ he said of Sunday’s match. ‘You’re talking about coming up against a team that’s in as bad form, if not worse, than Wolves. So now’s the time to reply.
‘But it is a separate game anyway. The North London derby is at all times a separate game to what’s occurring within the league. There’s other things at stake in relation to this game on Sunday. It’s an phenomenal derby this weekend.’
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