'Can't replace Rice and Odegaard' - so what should Arteta do?published at 13:04
I am not sure what I expect Mikel Arteta to do about the centre of the pitch for the north London derby, but missing his two key midfielders is huge.
There is scope to drop Kai Havertz into more of an attacking midfield role but I do not think they can replace Declan Rice and Martin Odegaard with the players that they have.
Tottenham’s midfield is also dynamic, so it is a big blow for Arteta. He will have to make adjustments to his team and that will be key.
They do not have another player like Odegaard with the way he links up players. Similarly, Rice's ability to cover ground and take the ball under pressure is not like anyone else. He can stop attacks and then build the next one.
In the north London derby, every player has to be able to handle the emotion. Those players that have played in it before will need to step up. For example, Jorginho and Thomas Partey have been at the club long enough to know the value of these games.
With the game at Spurs, Arteta needs players who will not rise to the crowd with their emotions - which will be exceptional because it is such a big game. Odegaard has been a great captain for the Gunners because he leads by example. It is not always about having the war cry when you have the armband.
And Arsenal’s defence have to play well. They can not take the bait from the home supporters and Spurs will be counter-attacking so they have to manage that too.
The crowd will be up for it and will try to make the atmosphere as hostile as possible. If you get too emotional in this game then it will play more into Tottenham’s hands than Arsenal’s.
Nedum was speaking to BBC Sport's Katie Stafford