Preview & Prediction: Dinamo Zagreb vs Arsenal

Arsenal travel to face Croatian side Dinamo Zagreb in the Stadion Maksimir looking to kick of their European campiagn with a win.

The last time these sides met was in the qualifying stage to this competition in 2006/07 – the first Champions League match to be played in the Emirates Stadium.

The hosts fell behind to a goal from Eduardo, who they signed the following summer, before Freddie Ljungberg and a stoppage-time winner from Mathieu Flamini gave them a 2-1 victory on the night, and 5-1 on aggregate.

The North London side have no new injury concerns from their 2-0 win over Stoke City on Saturday, but Danny Welbeck, Jack Wilshere and Tomas Rosicky are all still unavailable.

Captain Per Mertesacker is also likely to be missing after he was involved in a minor road traffic accident on Monday.

Theo Walcott netted the opener in the first half against the Potters, before Olivier Giroud headed past the impressive Jack Butland in the last 10 minutes to secure all three points. The duo will be battling it out for a striking spot once again.

The Gunners will need to be wary of their opponents, who are currently on a 41-game unbeaten streak in all competitions, and went the whole of last term without defeat.

Their Bosnian forward, Armin Hodzic, will need to be watched closely as he is the hosts’ top scorer with five goals this term.

Zoran Mamic’s team have collected 19 points from a possible 27 in the league and currently lie top of the table; their latest result being a comfortable 4-0 win over Lokomotvia Zagreb 4-0 on Friday.

Arsenal are playing in the Champions League for the 18th consecutive season; only Real Madrid have been in it longer without dropping out.

Arsene Wenger’s men have made it past the group stages in the last 12 seasons but have been knocked out at the last-16 stage in the last five campaigns, with their only Champions League final appearance ending in a 2-1 defeat against Barcelona in 2006.

League Position: Dinamo Zagreb – 1st, 19pts; Arsenal – 4th, 10pts
Last Meeting: Arsenal 2-1 Dinamo Zagreb (August 23, 2006)
Form: Dinamo Zagreb – DWDWW; Arsenal – LWDWW
Key Men: Dinamo Zagreb – Armin Hodzic; Arsenal – Theo Walcott

Shoot Says: Dinamo Zagreb 1-1 Arsenal