Arsenal team news and predicted line-up with defensive injury crisis forcing Emery to recall little-known Mavropanos against Cardiff
UNAI EMERY is set to hand little-known defender Konstantinos Mavropanos his first appearance of the season tonight against Cardiff as Arsenal battle an injury crisis.
Crocks to Laurent Koscielny and Sokratis have forced the Gunners to drastically reshuffle their back line.
Sokratis is out for a month with an ankle injury he picked up in Friday's 3-1 FA Cup loss to Manchester United, while Koscielny is set to miss out tonight after bruising his jaw.
Emery said: "Koscielny and Sokratis are not OK for tomorrow. But it is good news for example for Laurent Koscielny because he didn't break his jaw.
"Sokratis doesn't have a big injury but he isn't OK [to face Cardiff], I don't know how long but I think maybe two or three weeks."
Arsenal are also without long-term absentees Hector Bellerin (knee), Rob Holding (knee) and Danny Welbeck (ankle).
While Henrikh Mkhitaryan is still making a comeback following a broken metatarsal.
Emery could be forced to play a back-three of Shkodran Mustafi, Nacho Monreal and Mavropanos, with Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Sead Kolasinac at wing-back.
Greek giant Mavropanos, 21, played just three times for Arsenal last season following his £1.8million move from PAS Giannina.
He missed most of the season injured but has stepped up his fitness of late with the Under-23s side.
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Emery said: "Mavropanos has been working with us for the past month and has playing with the U23s. He is in the squad with the possibility to play."
Arsenal are three points behind fourth-placed Chelsea and level with United in fifth.
But Emery is still unlikely to play the club's top earner Mesut Ozil to try to secure a Champions League place.
When asked whether he needs more from the £350,000-a-week German, he said: "For Mesut I want his best performance every day. When he is playing also to give us his quality and commitment.
"I am demanding of myself, I am demanding every player to improve and we do better in our performance.
"It is for me first and the players, for Mesut, for Petr Cech, Lacazette, Matteo.
"We are very critical of ourselves to find our best performance every day."
Cardiff boss Neil Warnock must decide which players are in the right mindset to play over the Emiliano Sala tragedy.
When asked whether the Bluebirds did not want to play the clash so soon, he said: "In an ideal world I don't think I'd like another game at all - that's how I feel at the minute."
Warnock added: "I've had another chat with the lads at training yesterday morning.
"One or two, it was only right that they speak to people who might help them because you don't realise the trauma that it causes a lot of families, perhaps memories brought back different situations."