Arsenal vs Bolton: Vermaelen Injury Hands Squillaci His Premier League Debut

Thomas Vermaelen has established himself to be one of the best centre backs in the Premier League. He will miss out on the Bolton game, due to an injury sustained during the international between Germany and Belgium. He has a slim chance for making it to the mid-week fixture against Braga, and it is fortunate for Arsenal that he should be fit within a couple of weeks.

Arsene Wenger announced during the prematch press conference that newly signed defender Sebastien Squillaci, will be handed his debut in the tough fixture against Owen Coyle's team, due to the forced exclusion of Vermaelen from the squad. It is highly likely that Squillaci will partner Laurent Koscielny at the heart of defence.

Sebastien Squillaci, along with team-mates Denilson, Johan Djourou, and Lukasz Fabianski, played in the reserves encounter against Blackburn, which ended in a thrilling win for Arsenal through a late winner from Jay Emmanuel Thomas. Squillaci played for the entire match and looked composed throughout the match.

Squillaci is an experienced player who has played in a number of clubs before joining Arsenal from Sevilla. Wenger said that he knew the player and his attributes pretty well, and that his outing with the reserves would have helped him gain his positional play back.

Squillaci will add some much needed experience to this Arsenal lineup. He is not the fastest defender, but his experience, positioning and no-nonsense approach will help him adjust to the Premiership.

Laurent Koscielny has been good in the two matches that he has played so far. He put in a good shift against Liverpool and barring the one piece of bad defending against Blackburn, which lead to the goal, he was decent throughout the encounter.

He needs to muscle up just a bit, but he has shown that he does not look out of place in the most physical league in the world. He has good technique and can bring out the ball from the back. He can play at both Centre Back positions and will most probably be stationed at left centre-back today.

Johan Djourou will be on the substitutes bench for this encounter. He has moved down the pecking order because of his injury problems in the last year, which saw him miss the entire season barring the last match. He will play his part over the course of the season, should be remain fit, and as an added advantage, he can also play in the defensive midfield role.

Denilson is also fit after enduring a string of injury troubles over the last year or so. He has asked Arsenal to take Bolton very seriously as they would take Chelsea or Manchester United. He will most probably warm the bench, because Wenger will not want to risk him after coming back from a long-term injury.

Abou Diaby and Alex Song should start in the midfield alongside their talismanic captain Cesc Fabregas, who is gaining ground on improving his match sharpness.

Marouane Chamakh is the only fit Centre forward, because of injures to Robin van Persie and Nicklas Bendtner and will start in today's encounter. Andrei Arshavin will occupy one of the wings and Emmanuel Eboue, Tomas Rosicky, Jack Wilshere, and Carlos Vela will compete for the other slot.

Even though Samir Nasri is included in the squad, he will not be rushed into the game, and will most probably make an appearance from the bench.

Even with all their injury woes, Arsenal do have the depth to beat the resilient Bolton Wanderers at the Emirates. They need to win these tough fixtures, if they are to consistently challenge for Title honours and the Gaffer will hope that his side come out unscathed from this encounter.

Predicted Starting XI (4-2-3-1):

Almunia; Clichy, Koscielny, Squillaci, Sagna; Song, Diaby; Arshavin, Fabregas, Rosicky; Chamakh

Substitutes:

Denilson, Nasri, Wilshere, Vela, Djourou, Fabianski, Eboue

Prediction: Arsenal 3 - Bolton Wanderers 1