Arsenal predicted line-up vs Nottingham Forest: Two major changes as £59m duo drop out

After a weekend of watching those around them compete in FA Cup action, Arsenal will travel to the City Ground to face Nottingham Forest in the Premier League on Tuesday evening. The Gunners made an emphatic return from their winter break with a 5-0 thrashing of Crystal Palace a little over a week ago, and will be hoping to make it two wins from two against Nuno Espirito Santo's men.

At the time of writing, Mikel Arteta's side are third in the table, five points adrift of leaders Liverpool, who they will host at the Emirates on Sunday afternoon. The Reds face a tricky clash against Chelsea at Anfield on Wednesday evening prior to their trip to the capital.

For their part, Forest could only muster a 0-0 draw against Championship outfit Bristol City in the FA Cup on Friday night, and were beaten 3-2 in their most recent Premier League outing against Brentford. Indeed, the Midlands club have yet to win a match in 90 minutes since the turn of the year, with their only victory being an FA Cup third round replay against Blackpool that required an extra time intervention from Chris Wood.

But how will the two sides line up on Tuesday night? We've taken a look at their latest team news and predicted XIs below...

Arsenal Team News

Arsenal still have a number of confirmed absences to deal with heading into Tuesday's clash. Jurrien Timber, who suffered an ACL injury on the opening weekend of the season, is understood to be progressing well with his rehabilitation, but is still some way off returning to first team action. Similarly, midfielder Fabio Vieira is not expected to feature having undergone groin surgery late last year. Thomas Partey has, however, returned to full training, and is an outside shout to feature in some capacity.

Elsewhere, both Mohamed Elneny and Takehiro Tomiyasu are away on international duty, representing Egypt and Japan at the African Cup of Nations and Asian Cup respectively.

There is better news regarding Declan Rice, though. The England international was withdrawn during the win over Crystal Palace, but it is understood that the move was largely precautionary, and that he should be fit enough to feature against Forest. Speaking after his substitution, Arteta said: '[Declan] was feeling some tiredness. I don’t know exactly what muscle it was, but when he says that at 3-0. Obviously, we don’t want to take any risks.'

Likewise, Gabriel Magalhaes should also be okay enough to play having been taken off early last Saturday. The Brazilian will face a late assessment, but the expectation is that he will be in contention for a start.

Arsenal Predicted XI

David Raya; Ben White, Gabriel Magalhaes, William Saliba, Jakub Kiwior; Declan Rice, Martin Odegaard, Kai Havertz; Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Jesus, Gabriel Martinelli.

Nottingham Forest Team News

Nottingham Forest are also facing a barrage of absences of their own, and have been hit harder than most by international call-ups this month. Five players are currently away at the African Cup of Nations, with Serge Aurier, Willy Boly, Cheikhou Kouyate, Ibrahim Sangare, and Ola Aina all unavailable at the time of writing.

Elsewhere, Brazilian defender Felipe is set to miss out due to a hamstring strain, while Moussa Niakhite is also expected to be consigned to a watching brief due to an ankle issue. Danger man Taiwo Awoniyi is still a considerable way of making his return, while Arsenal loanee Nuno Tavares is unable to face his parent club.

There is more optimistic news regarding Anthony Elanga and Divock Origi, who will both be hoping to make comebacks from thigh and groin problems respectively.

Nottingham Forest Predicted XI

Matt Turner; Gonzalo Montiel, Scott McKenna, Murillo, Neco Williams; Danilo, Orel Mangala; Anthony Elanga, Morgan Gibbs-White, Callum Hudson-Odoi; Chris Wood.