Mikel Arteta has made four changes to his Arsenal starting XI for Wednesday night’s Champions League opener against Napoli, with Viktor Gyokeres and Eberechi Eze both handed starts.
Piero Hincapie and Mikel Merino also come into the side as Arsenal begin their European campaign at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.
Arsenal are back in the competition after reaching last season’s final, with the full 2026/27 Champions League fixture schedule already confirmed for Arteta’s side.
David Raya starts in goal behind a back four of Ben White, Ezri Konsa, Gabriel Magalhaes and Hincapie.
Declan Rice partners Merino in midfield, with captain Martin Odegaard operating ahead of them. ReadArsenal’s Arsenal captaincy guide explains Odegaard’s role in the squad and the leadership options behind him.
Bukayo Saka and Eze support Gyokeres in attack.
Arsenal confirmed XI vs Napoli
Arsenal: Raya; White, Konsa, Gabriel, Hincapie; Rice, Merino; Saka, Odegaard, Eze; Gyokeres.
Substitutes: Arrizabalaga, Meslier, Tzolis, Madueke, Havertz, Calafiori, Zubimendi, Guimaraes, Lewis-Skelly, Dowman, Salmon.
Arteta has made four changes from the side which beat Chelsea 2-1 on Sunday.
Hincapie replaces Riccardo Calafiori at left-back, while Merino comes in for Myles Lewis-Skelly.
Eze replaces Christos Tzolis on the left and Gyokeres is preferred to Kai Havertz through the middle.
The selection is possible within Arsenal’s European squad structure, with the club’s Champions League squad registration guide explaining UEFA’s List A, locally-trained and List B rules.
Gyokeres is given a major opportunity after competing with Havertz for the central attacking role during the opening weeks of the season.
Eze also comes straight into the XI for Arsenal’s first European match of the campaign.
One notable absentee is Jurrien Timber.
The defender travelled to Naples after returning to training, but he is not included among the substitutes.
That is significant because Timber had been included in Arsenal’s travelling party after recovering from a groin problem.
Our latest Arsenal injury news before Napoli had tracked his progress alongside Cristhian Mosquera and William Saliba.
Arteta has instead named Calafiori and academy defender Marli Salmon among his defensive options on the bench.
Salmon’s presence is permitted through UEFA’s youth registration rules, while the complete senior list can be found in our Arsenal Champions League squad guide.
Wednesday’s game is Arsenal’s first of eight league-phase matches, with Lille, Bayern Munich, Slavia Prague, Borussia Dortmund, Real Madrid, Real Betis and Sabah still to come in the full Champions League schedule.
The immediate focus, though, is Napoli.
Arsenal are chasing the ideal start in Europe with Arteta making four clear selection calls from Sunday’s Premier League victory.
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