Football.london’s two Arsenal reporters have named their preferred starting line-ups for the Champions League final against PSG in Budapest.
Chief Arsenal Correspondent Tom Canton and reporter Ryan Taylor have selected their teams, with one key disagreement emerging between the pair over Jurrien Timber.
Canton insists Timber must start if he is fit enough to play, arguing the Dutchman’s quality at right-back is significantly greater than any other available option.
“If there is any chance that Jurrien Timber can play in this game, he needs to,” Canton wrote, pointing to the level the Dutch defender brings to the position.
Taylor takes the opposite view, arguing it is too great a risk to start Timber given he has not played a single minute since mid-March.
“There’s no denying he would have been a game-changer if he was definitely in top shape but it’s been two-and-a-half months since he even kicked a ball in a match,” Taylor said.
Taylor highlights PSG winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia as the reason why any doubt over Timber’s sharpness makes the selection too dangerous to consider.
In place of Timber, Taylor selects Cristhian Mosquera at right-back, describing him as a sound defender with a strong physical presence capable of disrupting the Georgian winger.
“If I were Mosquera, I would simply study Kvara on YouTube all evening before the game,” Taylor added, backing the defender to rise to the occasion on the biggest night of his career.
Both reporters agree on Kai Havertz as their centre-forward, with Canton pointing to the striker’s goal against Burnley that won Arsenal the league, alongside contributions against Bayer Leverkusen, Sporting CP and Manchester City in recent big moments.
Canton also references Havertz’s Champions League final goal in 2021 as further evidence of the forward’s ability to deliver on the grandest stage.
Riccardo Calafiori is selected at left-back by both reporters, with Taylor noting the defender has finished the campaign strongly and earned his place in the XI.
In midfield, both reporters pick Myles Lewis-Skelly alongside Declan Rice and Martin Odegaard, with Taylor preferring Lewis-Skelly over Martin Zubimendi for the role.
Canton raises a concern over Eberechi Eze, noting the midfielder’s substitute appearances have not always impressed outside of his contribution away at Atletico Madrid.
Taylor agrees that Martin Odegaard edges Eze in attacking midfield, while Canton names Piero Hincapie and Viktor Gyokeres as options available from the bench.
Canton’s preferred Arsenal XI reads: Raya; Timber, Saliba, Gabriel, Calafiori; Rice, Lewis-Skelly, Odegaard; Saka, Havertz, Trossard.
Taylor’s preferred Arsenal XI reads: Raya; Mosquera, Saliba, Gabriel, Calafiori; Rice, Lewis-Skelly, Odegaard; Saka, Havertz, Trossard.
