Borussia Dortmund vs. Arsenal: How the Gunners Will Line Up in Champions League

Arsenal face their toughest test of the season this week as they travel to Germany to play Borussia Dortmund in their first Champions League game.

Manchester City at home was one thing, but an absolutely stacked Dortmund side, in the cauldron of the Westfalenstadion, is an entirely different matter.

Arsenal have played the German powers in two of the last three seasons, and every game between them has been a thrilling and difficult battle. Though one could argue the Gunners are stronger than they were in any of their past meetings with the German giants, their form raises questions about how they will fare.

They have won only one Premier League game this season and their last win in any competition was a tight 1-0 over Besiktas. Arsenal have not quite looked cohesive for a prolonged stretch of time this season, and Dortmund will punish any failure to perform as a team.

There were signs of life against Manchester City, though. For the first third of the game, Arsenal relentlessly pressed the champions and seemed at least on equal footing with a team that had bludgeoned them a season before.

The issue, as ever, will be conceding on the opponent's first chance. Via @Orbinho:

Luckily, Arsenal are getting a few key players back to full fitness at just the right time. Mikel Arteta will probably start after merely joining the squad against City; same for Kieran Gibbs. Though Mathieu Debuchy was banjaxed, there are more players returning from injury than absent because of it.

Dortmund, meanwhile, are dealing with injuries to a couple of absolutely pivotal players. Per their website, Nuri Sahin and Marco Reus, the latter unquestionably the best and most dynamic player on their team, are both sidelined with substantial problems.

With those considerations in mind, let's take a look at how Arsene Wenger might align his team.

via lineupbuilder.com

There are two changes to the back line that were deployed against Manchester City last weekend.

Calum Chambers is the obvious replacement for Debuchy, who will reportedly be out for two months. That leaves Arsenal unforgivably short on numbers, so Hector Bellerin will probably be on the bench to deputize. Assuming Gibbs is fit, he will probably reassume his rightful place on the left.

There is also a bit of a question about who Arsenal's defensive midfielder will be, as Mikel Arteta only featured for a couple of minutes against City. But he will start if he is even marginally fit, as Wenger values his calmness and leadership to a remarkable degree.

Jack Wilshere must start ahead of Arteta after his virtuoso performance last weekend. He deserved all the plaudits he received after scoring one and assisting one, and he can single-handedly hoist Arsenal above Dortmund if he is at his box-to-box best.

Kirsty Wigglesworth/Associated Press

That leaves Mesut Ozil to start in attacking midfield. Last week I incorrectly assumed that Wenger would cease forcing his most creative player to toil on the left wing in a 4-1-4-1. But surely, after another utterly anonymous and ineffective performance by the German in a position he should not be playing, Wenger will see sense.

Alternatively, he could put Aaron Ramsey in Ozil's position, bench Ozil, and put a rested Santi Cazorla on the left wing. This is probably the most rational solution to the problem of Arsenal's embarrassment of riches, but Ramsey was not entirely convincing against City and Wenger almost always starts Ozil.

The rest of the lineup is very straightforward. Alexis Sanchez will obviously start on the wing after a splendid performance last weekend in which he never stopped running or chasing the ball (which the entire team will have to do against a pugnacious Dortmund side). Danny Welbeck had a pretty good debut last weekend and is the only good option Wenger has at striker, anyway.

This lineup gives Arsenal a stellar bench, too. Aaron Ramsey, Tomas Rosicky, Nacho Monreal, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Lukas Podolski should all be available. That gives Arsenal a decent chance of snatching three points late on.