Arsenal team news: van Hecke and Welbeck set to return

Main Club Sponsor

TICKETS

SHOP

Albion take on Arsenal at the Emirates this weekend.

2025-12-23T10:45+00:00

Danny Welbeck missed Saturday's game due to a back problem. 📷 by Paul Hazlewood.

Albion take on Premier League leaders Arsenal on Saturday as Fabian Hurzeler's team look to end a winless run of four games.

Team news

Jan Paul van Hecke missed Saturday's 0-0 draw with Sunderland. 📷 by Paul Hazlewood.

Hurzeler is hopeful of having Danny Welbeck and Jan Paul van Hecke available for the game against the Gunners after the pair missed the 0-0 draw with Sunderland. The German will also have Lewis Dunk and Diego Gomez back from suspension, while Mats Wieffer will be monitored ahead of the clash.

"Danny Welbeck will train today [Tuesday], so he'll be back," said Hurzeler. "Jan Paul will train on Wednesday so he should be back. The two suspended players will be back and Mats Wieffer is okay. We go day by day and follow the procedure, but he looks quite well. I think that he will also be available."

Their last line-up

🔴 𝗧𝗘𝗔𝗠𝙉𝙀𝙒𝙎 ⚪️

🛡️ Calafiori returns at left-back
🪄 Saka and Trossard out wide
🫡 Gyokeres leads the line

Bring the energy, Gunners ⚡️

🤝 Presented by @deel
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) December 20, 2025

The Gunners secured their 12th win of the league campaign with a 1-0 victory over Everton on Saturday. Sitting two points clear at the top of the table, Mikel Arteta's team haven't lost at home in the Premier League this season.

Match facts

Arsenal have won just three of their eight Premier League home games against Albion (38%, D2 L3), only having a lower win rate against Wimbledon (25%) and Liverpool (36%) among sides they’ve faced 5+ times.

Brighton are winless in their last four Premier League games against Arsenal (D2 L2), though they did come from behind to draw 1-1 in both meetings last season.

All three of Arsenal’s Premier League home wins against Brighton have been by a 2-0 scoreline (October 2017, May 2021, December 2023), failing to win any of their five against them at the Emirates in which they’ve conceded (D2 L3).

Arsenal have won each of their last five Premier League home games. Only once under Mikel Arteta have they had a longer run at the Emirates, winning 10 in a row between April and December 2022.

Albion have failed to score in their last two Premier League matches, one of only two sides who failed to score on MD16 and MD17, along with Everton. The Seagulls haven’t gone three without a goal since January 2024.

Arsenal sit top of the Premier League for Christmas for the fifth time along with 2002-03, 2007-08, 2022-23 and 2023-24 – they have never won the competition from that position. Two of those have been under Mikel Arteta – no manager has ever been top at Christmas three times and never then won the competition.

Albion have never won a Premier League match in December under manager Fabian Hürzeler in 10 attempts (D6 L4). It’s the most games ever managed by a manager in December without winning.

In their last game – a 0-0 draw with Sunderland – Brighton named the youngest starting XI in a Premier League match this season (23 years, 240 days) under the youngest manager in the competition (32 years, 297 days on 20 December), while also fielding the oldest player to appear in the competition in 2025-26 (substitute James Milner, aged 39 years and 350 days).

Among players to play 500+ minutes in the Premier League this season, only Manchester City duo Jeremy Doku (3.4) and Rayan Cherki (3.2) have created more open play chances per 90 minutes than Arsenal’s Martin Odegaard (2.5), with the Norwegian creating four last time out against Everton.

His next appearance will be the 150th in the Premier League for Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya – since his debut in August 2021, he has kept more clean sheets than any other goalkeeper in the competition (58).

Match officials