It's crunch time for Arsenal's season. Having seemingly snatched defeat from the jaws of victory in the race for the top four with three defeats in a row against Crystal Palace, Brighton and Southampton, the Gunners are now arguably in the box seat again thanks to shock wins over Chelsea and Manchester United.
What's been most impressive about the victories is the lack of key personnel available. Kieran Tierney is out for the season and although Thomas Partey has been pictured back on the running machine a return for him before the end of the campaign still seems unlikely. Captain Alexandre Lacazette was also absent for the wins over 'big six' opposition after losing his place in the line up to Eddie Nketiah due to a mixture of a positive test for COVID-19 and his poor form.
There is no sense though that Arsenal can afford to rest on their laurels at this stage. While Manchester United and West Ham appear to be out of the race for the top four, Tottenham are still very much hot on their tails, with next month's rearranged North London Derby set to be crucial.
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With that in mind it's absolutely essential that the Gunners pick up all three points when they travel to the London Stadium this Sunday. Mikel Arteta's men will be favourites due to the fact that the game is sandwiched in between the Hammers' two Europa League semi finals against Eintracht Frankfurt, but this game is still a tricky test.
The Spaniard has had his team working hard at London Colney in the build up as a result. The club released footage from the training session on their website, and here's a few of the things football.london noticed from it.
Youngsters involved
With all the aforementioned injuries and the January departures of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Pablo Mari, Ainsley Maitland-Niles, Folarin Balogun, Calum Chambers and Sead Kolasinac, Arsenal's squad is pretty thin at the minute. As a result the Gunners have looked to supplement their training sessions by promoting players from Kevin Betsy's under-23 side.
In this latest session the players involved were Omar Rekik, Mazeed Ogungbo, Jack Henry-Francis, Joel Lopez and Salah-Eddine Oulad M'Hand. Interestingly Henry-Francis appeared to be wearing different coloured socks to the rest of his fellow Arsenal youngsters, sporting a black pair instead of white.
The 23s have their final game of the Premier League 2 season this Friday against Leeds at the Emirates, and it's unclear whether those involved in first team training will be available for that match. You can follow live coverage of the game right here on football.london.
Tomiyasu looking sharp
After nearly four months out due to a spate of calf injuries, it was a truly delightful sight to see Takehiro Tomiyasu return to the field in the closing stages of Arsenal's win over Manchester United. The Japanese international has been missed in recent weeks due to the balance he provides in the backline.
Arsenal are keen to manage him back carefully after the set backs he's suffered during his rehab process in the past, but if the training session footage is anything to go by, Tomiyasu is looking pretty sharp already. During a game of El Rondo, the 23-year-old was under pressure from Salah, but turned expertly away from the Dutch midfielder to draw a mixture of gasps and cries of excitement from his teammates and the coaching staff.
Tomiyasu is capable of offsetting the more attacking instincts of Nuno Tavares, and given West Ham's strength in the air, Sunday may be the time to bring him back into to the starting XI. He certainly seems raring to go.
Pepe striker hint?
Arsenal's forwards haven't exactly been at their most prolific this season. Alexandre Lacazette has scored just four times in the Premier League while Eddie Nketiah has just two. With this mind it's reassuring to see that they've been working on their finishing.
In a drill with third choice goalkeeper Arthur Okonkwo, both Lacazette and Nketiah were seen taking shots on goal in one-vs-one situations. They were joined by Gabriel Martinelli who has been touted as a potential future striker by Mikel Arteta, but perhaps more interestingly, Nicolas Pepe was also a part of the drill.
If fellow wingers Bukayo Saka and Emile Smith Rowe had taken part, then perhaps you could have dismissed this as an activity for all the attacking players, but their absence suggests that this drill was for strikers only. Pepe has played up front in the past for Lille and could be an option if Arsenal's striking problems continue between now and the end of the season. While it does seem unlikely, it's interesting to note that Arteta is at least considering the prospect.
