Predicted Arsenal XI to face Paris Saint-Germain tonight

Arsenal face the acid test of their Champions League Group A credentials this evening as Arsene Wenger’s men head to France to take on Paris Saint-Germain at Parc Des Princes.

Beaten quarter-finalists at the hands of Manchester City last season of course, PSG have been steadily improving in Europe since their mega takeover and are favourites for Group A.

That said, given the loss of club talisman Zlatan Ibrahimovic, you’d expect Unai Emery’s side to be weaker for his loss but nevertheless, the French champions still boast some top players.

With the likes of Marco Verratti, Lucas Moura, Angel Di Maria and Edinson Cavani to call upon, PSG are still a huge threat and given the way in which Arsenal have stuttered so far this campaign, this will be no easy task.

But if Arsenal were to grab a victory in France, it could really kick-start their season with Arsene Wenger having admitted at the weekend that his side are yet to hit top gear so far this season.

So without further ado, Arsenal Mania have devised what we believe will be Arsene Wenger’s chosen starting eleven in Paris tonight.

Petr Cech

No debates here with Petr Cech by far and away the undisputed first choice between the sticks at Arsenal.

That said, we saw Arsene Wenger infuriate Gooners by playing David Ospina in their 2015/16 Champions League opener against Dinamo Zagreb in a decision that was criticised.

Expect Wenger to learn from his mistakes while handing a start to the world class Cech in this one given the calibre of their opposition.

Hector Bellerin, Shkodran Mustafi, Laurent Koscielny, Nacho Monreal

In many ways, this back four is many Gooners’ preferred choice in the defence.

New boy Shkodran Mustafi wasn’t perfect on his debut against Southampton at the weekend but he was never going to be joining a new league and late on in the transfer window.

With Per Mertesacker and Gabriel Paulista still sidelined and this game probably way too much for Rob Holding so soon into his Gunners career, expect Mustafi to partner Laurent Koscielny who has been declared fit despite suffering an eye injury.

Granit Xhaka, Santi Cazorla

Here’s where we believe a change could take place with Granit Xhaka having been on the bench against Southampton at the weekend.

Francis Coquelin and Santi Cazorla were Arsene Wenger’s chosen defensive midfield duo in that fixture but we expect Xhaka to come into the side despite Coquelin battling well.

In many ways, Arsene Wenger still doesn’t seem to know his best combination in the central midfield area right now and with each player fighting it out and showcasing their abilities, we think there would be uproar if their £30+ million signing wasn’t starting games of this magnitude.

Theo Walcott, Mesut Ozil, Alexis Sanchez

There were starts for both Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Lucas Perez against Southampton of course but we expect Arsene Wenger to go with a strong trio of Theo Walcott, Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez in attacking midfield.

Walcott hasn’t been terrible so far this season with the player clearly intent on raising his game in this massive season for him personally while Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez select themselves of course.

Arsenal should be able to get the best out of Alexis from his strongest left wing position yet again, having started the Southampton game from the bench following his long distance travel during the international break.

Olivier Giroud

Up top, we reckon Olivier Giroud will return to the starting eleven.

Having proved his fitness for France during the recent international break, Giroud was paramount in Arsenal just getting over the line against Southampton at the weekend.

Winning the penalty that Santi Cazorla converted following Jose Fonte’s foul, Giroud will be eager to impress in front of his home nation crowd this evening while really getting his season up and running following his Euro 2016 disappointment.