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Mikel Arteta's men have virtually been flawless in Europe so far, winning all seven of their matches with minimal fuss. No team has scored more Champions League goals this term, while they currently boast the best defensive record in the competition by some distance.
Having swept past Athletic Bilbao, Olympiacos, Atlético Madrid and Slavia Prague across their opening four fixtures without conceding a goal, Arsenal registered a 3-1 victory over German giants Bayern Munich to consolidate their position at the summit of the league phase table. A comfortable success in Brugge preceded last Tuesday’s impressive win at the San Siro, ensuring the Gunners secured automatic qualification to the last sixteen with a match to spare.
Although they’ve only managed to earn a solitary point, Kairat can reflect proudly on their maiden appearance in UEFA’s most-prestigious club tournament. It all looked a bit ominous after they were soundly thrashed by Sporting Lisbon and Real Madrid in quick succession, but a goalless draw with fellow debutants Pafos handed them a welcome confidence boost ahead of a daunting trip to Milan. Inter could only secure a one-goal margin of victory over the reigning Kazakh champions, a feat replicated by FC Copenhagen (3-2) and Olympiacos (1-0) as the next two matchdays unfolded.
Last week’s heavy loss to Club Brugge would have been a considerable disappointment following an extremely positive set of performances, but Kairat still have an opportunity to lift themselves off the foot of the table if they can somehow avoid defeat in North London.
Live coverage of this Wednesday’s contest at the Emirates will be provided by TNT Sports, the United Kingdom’s primary broadcaster of Champions League football. Those with a discovery+ subscription are also able to access this match.
Arsenal v Kairat: Key information
Date: Wednesday, 28th January
Kick-off time: 20:00 (GMT)
Venue: Emirates Stadium, London
Referee: Urs Schnyder (Assistant Referees: Marco Zürcher and Benjamin Zürcher, Fourth Official: Sven Wolfensberger
VAR: Fedayi San (Assistant VAR: Piotr Lasyk)
TV Channels: TNT Sports 7
Live stream: discovery+
Odds: Arsenal: 1/25, Draw: 14/1 Kairat: 40/1
Odds provided by bet365
Arsenal v Kairat: Team news
As they’re guaranteed to finish in the top two places, Arsenal have already secured a home tie in the return leg of their Round of 16 clash. That assurance enables Mikel Arteta to rest some of his key players, as the Gunners continue to battle across several fronts.
The Kazakh Premier League follows a schedule that avoids the harsher winter months, so Kairat’s domestic season concluded way back in October. Although his charges will therefore be a little short of match practice, head coach Rafael Urazbakhtin only has one or two significant injuries to contend with.
Arsenal team news
Having pulled a muscle in the warm-up ahead of the Gunners’ 2-1 triumph over Brighton last month, Riccardo Calafiori is set to remain sidelined a while longer. However, two of the Italian full-back’s defensive colleagues have recently returned to action. Piero Hincapié got almost an hour under his belt on Sunday afternoon after shaking off yet another groin strain, while Cristhian Mosquera has now fully recovered following a medium-term ankle issue.
Although it seemed as if he had pretty much completed his rehabilitation from a serious knee injury, there’s still a question mark over the fitness of Kai Havertz. This latest bump in the road follows a major setback in November, when the German international sustained ligament damage in the affected area. Havertz made substitute appearances in both domestic cups earlier this month, but wasn’t even part of Arsenal’s matchday squad for the visit of Manchester United. Meanwhile, talented teenager Max Dowman won’t be available until the middle of next month.
With Mikel Arteta set to ring the changes, there could be an opportunity for several fringe players to feature. Christian Nørgaard will want to be involved after failing to make any sort of impact since his summer arrival, while the likes of Eberechi Eze, Noni Madueke, and Myles Lewis-Skelly may get the chance to stake their claim for a regular starting berth.
Arsenal predicted line-up v Kairat (4-3-3)
Coach: Mikel Arteta
David Raya (GK); Ben White, William Saliba, Cristhian Mosquera, Myles Lewis-Skelly; Christian Nørgaard, Martín Zubimendi, Eberechi Eze; Gabriel Martinelli, Mikel Merino, Noni Madueke
Kairat team news
Due to the January departure of Israeli maestro Ofri Arad and an injury to hard-working youngster Olzhas Baybek, Rafael Urazbakhtin is currently short of options in the middle of the park.
The visitors are also missing eighteen-year-old playmaker Azamat Tuyakbaev, who is due to receive surgery to address an ongoing respiratory problem. Tuyakbaev’s unavailability won’t cause too much upset, given his lack of first-term appearances, but the absence of another teenager makes a huge difference to Kairat’s hopes of leaving the Emirates with an unlikely share of the spoils. Kazakh wonderkid Dastan Satpayev – who will head to Stamford Bridge in the summer, having long since agreed a deal to join Chelsea – is nursing an unspecified injury, leaving Brazilian forward Edmilson to continue leading the line.
Dan Glazer and Damir Kassabulat will look to provide an effective shield in front of a fairly settled back five, while Aleksandr Mrynskiy and Valery Gromyko are set to assume the two wide attacking roles, either side of the creative Jorginho.
Kairat predicted line-up v Arsenal (4-2-3-1)
Coach: Rafael Urazbakhtin
Temirlan Anarbekov (GK); Yerkin Tapalov, Alexandr Shirobokov, Yegor Sorokin, Luís Mata; Dan Glazer, Damir Kassabulat; Aleksandr Mrynskiy, Jorginho, Valery Gromyko; Edmilson
Where to watch on TV or live stream?
With the remaining five English clubs all still battling to clinch a place in the top eight, Arsenal’s encounter with Kairat won’t quite receive the same level of attention as several other ties. There will only be a short build-up ahead of this match, which will be screened on TNT Sports 7.
Meanwhile, Discovery+ customers can follow every single minute of action from the final night of the Champions League’s opening phase, with all 18 clashes available to watch on the streaming platform’s in-house app.
Head-to-head record
Given Kairat’s extremely limited experience on the European stage, it’s hardly surprising to discover that these two teams have never previously faced one another. In fact, instances of meetings between English and Kazakh clubs are generally very rare.
Manchester United were the last Premier League side to host a Kazakh opponent, edging past seven-time native champions Astana in September 2019. However, two months after that unconvincing 1-0 victory on home soil, a young Red Devils outfit were somewhat embarrassingly beaten in the reverse fixture at the Astana Arena.
It’s worth noting that Arsenal haven’t lost against a team they’re facing for the first time in Europe on each of the last eleven occasions, winning ten and drawing just one of these contests. The last time the Gunners were defeated in this scenario came during the 2018/19 Europa League campaign, when they suffered a 3-1 defeat to Rennes in the first leg of their last sixteen tie. Unai Emery’s side put their French opponents to the sword in North London before marching on to the final, where they succumbed to Premier League rivals Chelsea on a balmy night in Baku.
Arsenal v Kairat – match result odds
The odds, correct at the time of publication, are subject to change. All odds provided by bet365.