Group B leaders Arsenal will head to Stade Bollaert-Delelis brimming with confidence to face Lens in gameweek two of the Champions League on Tuesday evening.
The hosts played out a 1-1 draw against Sevilla to earn their first point of the competition in week one, while the visitors sent a clear message to the rest of the group by recording a 4-0 win over PSV Eindhoven at the Emirates Stadium on the same day.
Match preview
© Reuters
It has been an incredible journey for Lens over the last three years, rising from Ligue 2 to missing out on a top-flight league title by the slenderest of margins last season, though returning to Europe's most elite club competition after a 21-year wait is still a more than worthwhile consolation prize.
The Blood and Gold got their Champions League campaign started against Sevilla a couple of weeks ago and came from a goal down inside the first 10 minutes to claim a well-deserved point.
Arguably, that result was something of a turning point for Franck Haise, whose side had failed to win any of their first five league games, managing just one point in that time, which came in a 1-1 draw against Rennes in gameweek two of the league season.
Since their trip to Spain, the hosts have won back-to-back Ligue 1 matches, beating Toulouse 2-1 at this venue and overcoming Strasbourg 1-0 on the road last weekend, which took them out of the relegation zone after seven league matches.
Lens early-season difficulties could be partly attributed to the departure of a few key players, such as Lois Openda and Seko Fofana, but with their new arrivals now starting to find their rhythm, Haise and co will be looking to maintain their upward trajectory and a victory here will be a welcomed boost of confidence heading into a very busy period until the next international break.
© Reuters
Meanwhile, Arsenal made their return to the Champions League following a six-year hiatus and marked the occasion with a sublime performance as they smashed four goals past a PSV side that have not dropped a single point in the Eredivisie this season.
Bukayo Saka gave the Gunners the lead inside the first 10 minutes of the match, while Leandro Trossard and Gabriel Jesus also got on the scoresheet to send their side into the break with a three-goal cushion.
Mikel Arteta's first match as a manager in Europe's top club competition got even better in the second half as Martin Odegaard stuck away a fourth goal 20 minutes from the end, taking them out of reach of their opponents and into the lead in the group standings.
However, it is not just in this competition that they have been impressive, as the Gunners are also unbeaten after seven league matches with five wins and two draws, including a 4-0 win over Bournemouth last weekend.
Arsenal are now one of only two sides in the Premier League that are yet to suffer defeat this season and come into this one having won all four of their away matches in all competitions this term, while they also kept clean sheets in each of those matches.
Team News
© Reuters
Massadio Haidara has not featured for Lens since their match against Sevilla due to a thigh injury, which should see Deiver Machado continue in the wing-back role for the foreseeable future.
David Costa (shoulder), Jimmy Cabot (ACL) and Wuilker Farinez (ACL) have been out with injuries since the start of the campaign, and none of them are expected to return for at least a few more weeks.
Big-money signing Elye Wahi got his long-awaited first goal for his new employers over the weekend and should continue in attack, with Angelo Fulgini and Florian Sotoca in support.
After making a bright start to life in London, Jurrien Timber has been ruled out until the new year with a knee injury. However, Arteta has a ready-made replacement in Ben White, who scored the final goal against The Cherries last weekend.
Joining Timber on the treatment table is Thomas Partey (groin), while Gabriel Martinelli was expected to return to the squad last weekend and could do so in this one.
Fabio Vieira was given a run out last weekend after shaking off a knock and could return to the starting 11, while Saka limped off in the second half over the weekend with what Arteta called a 'pretty bad knock,' and could be rested here with a big match against Manchester City to come over the weekend.
Lens possible starting lineup:
Samba; Gradit, Danso, Medina; Frankowski, Samed, Mendy, Machado; Fulgini, Sotoca; Wahi
Arsenal possible starting lineup:
Raya; White, Saliba, Gabriel, Zinchenko; Odegaard, Rice, Vieira; Trossard, Nketiah, Jesus
We say: Lens 1-2 Arsenal
While Lens have shown improvement over the last couple of weeks, they now face a completely different type of opponent in Arsenal, who are firing on all cylinders. We expect the hosts to put on another good performance here, but we are backing the visitors to claim the points.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Devesh Jaganath
