Arsenal continue their Europa League campaign tonight against Vitoria at the Emirates Stadium.
The Gunners are cruising through their group and could well be qualified by the end of their double header with the Portuguese side but even such a low stakes game might not be deemed to right environment for Mesut Ozil to feature.
Unai Emery has used this competition for blooding promising youngsters and giving key first-team options the chance to get minutes in their legs. If that is still the case on Thursday then Ozil may well miss out again.
Alexandre Lacazette will be among those looking for minutes in this competition having missed nearly two months of football with an ankle injury; it was apparent when he was introduced in the 1-0 defeat at Sheffield United that he needed more competitive action to get fully up to speed.
Then there is Emile Smith Rowe who was concussed during a Carabao Cup win over Nottingham Forest but of whom Emery thinks highly. Add Gabriel Martinelli and Ainsley Maitland-Niles on the flanks and the front four looks set.
Were Reiss Nelson not sidelined with a knee injury the chances of Ozil featuring would feel even more remote.
Lucas Torreira is almost certain to start in midfield where his partner could be either of Joe Willock or Dani Ceballos, both of whom have points to prove after indifferent displays at Bramall Lane on Monday night.
Against Crystal Palace Arsenal will likely have greater need for Ceballos' ingenuity than Willock's dynamism so the latter seems a more likely option for the clash with Vitoria.
Though none of Kieran Tierney, Rob Holding or Hector Bellerin suffered setbacks in their injury recovery they did not feature in the defeat on Monday. All three are expected to start on Thursday night though it is not beyond the realms of possibility that Emery might choose to curtail the involvement of some of them so that they can feature in some capacity against Palace.
Predicted Arsenal XI: Martinez; Bellerin, Mustafi, Holding, Tierney; Torreira, Willock; Maitland-Niles, Smith Rowe, Martinelli; Lacazette
