Arsenal - Manchester United combined XI: White, Fernandes and Rashford feature
The Gunners find themselves at the top of the Premier League table, five points clear of Man City, with a game-in-hand.
Meanwhile the Red Devils are hot on the tails of their local rivals, in third, just three points adrift.
Arsenal and Man Utd face-off in London this Sunday and a win for either side would be absolutely massive.
In the build-up for this huge clash, we at Flashscore have taken a look at both squads and put together a potential 'best XI' (if all available) from the extensive pool of talent.
Aaron Ramsdale
Up until very recently David de Gea would be an automatic choice between the sticks for this combined Arsenal and Man Utd team, but the Gunners' No. 1 is in fantastic form this season.
In just the Premier League, the 24-year-old Englishman has kept nine clean sheets - two behind leader Nick Pope - and has produced 42 saves in 18 matches, seeing just one defeat.
Gabriel Magalhaes
Between both sides there are admittedly not a great many in-form central defenders to pick from, but the Brazilian has arguably had the best term of the bunch.
Gabriel has been a stalwart for Arsenal this season, averaging 3.6 clearances per 90 minutes across 18 matches. He also averages 1.3 tackles and about one straight interception; the latter being a club record in 2022/23.
Ben White
Although the 6'1" England international has been used mainly at right-back this season, he has served primarily as a central defender throughout his career - and a very good one at that.
White has averaged 2.1 tackles per 90 minutes for Arsenal this term, which is the club high for any defender. He has also registered an average of 2.2 clearances and 0.7 interceptions so far.
Diogo Dalot
White has been the most outstanding right-back between both teams this season, with an additional hat-tip to Aaron Wan-Bissaka, but the Portugal man has been enjoying a redemption arc at Old Trafford.
Genuinely one of Man Utd's highest-performing players in 2022/23, Dalot has been great when darting forward for his side this term.
Defensively speaking, the 23-year-old has a 85% success rate with two tackles per match in the Premier League this season.
Oleksandr Zinchenko
The Ukraine star is a versatile player, but has spent the majority of his career at left-back. Again, we're taking liberties here as we did with White.
Somewhat underutilised during his time with Man City, the 26-year-old has hit the ground running with Arsenal.
Zinchenko has averaged an impressive 89% pass success rate in the Premier League this season and is seemingly more comfortable on the offence, pairing nicely with Dalot in this XI.
Casemiro
The first of three reasons Zinchenko finds himself relegated to left-back, the Brazil international is nothing short of world-class.
To the surprise of no-one, Casemiro has slotted into Man Utd's midfield this season with ease and has arguably been their most impactful player.
The former Real Madrid man's defensive statistics are staggering, averaging 3.4 tackles, 2.2 clearances and 1.3 interceptions per 90 minutes in the Premier League this season - all three metrics the highest at his club this term.
Bruno Fernandes
Although Christian Eriksen is enjoying a positive season with Man Utd, it's impossible to look beyond the talismanic Portugal star.
Fernandes is his side's second-highest goal-scorer this season and has registered four assists to boot.
On the creative side, he averages 2.7 key passes per 90 minutes across all competitions; with a 78% success rate, taking into account every pass he's made this term.
Martin Odegaard
The little Norwegian is having the season of his life at the Emirates, undoubtedly their most impactful player of 2022/23 so far.
Odegaard has scored eight times for Arsenal this term and has five assists to his name. The 24-year-old likes to get forward, averaging 2.2 key passes per 90 minutes and 1.2 dribbles.
If the Gunners can hold off Man City and go all the way in the Premier League this season, the midfielder will captain the club to their first English title in 20 years.
Bukayo Saka
A product of Arsenal's youth set-up, the 21-year-old is getting better and better year after year.
Saka has 14 goal contributions in all competitions this season, making him the Gunners' highest-performing offensive player this term.
Seven of those contributions are assists, which is also the club record for Arsenal in 2022/23 so far. To top that off, the England international is tied with Odegaard on 1.2 successful dribbles per 90 minutes.
Gabriel Martinelli
Not dissimilar to Saka, the young Brazilian continues to improve season after season at Arsenal.
Martinelli is just one behind Odegaard for goals this season (in all competitions) and, like both the Norweigan and Saka, is a phenomenal creative force.
Despite registering only two assists, the Brazilian plays an important role in build-up play and has averaged 1.7 key passes per 90 minutes as well as a general pass success rate of 87% - leading the line for Arsenal's forwards.
Marcus Rashford
The England international has taken on a lease of life at Man Utd since returning from World Cup duty, despite a stuttering start to the season.
Rashford, who has scored nine times in his last nine matches, has pushed Fernandes aside to be his team's top goal-scorer this term. A total of 15 goals.
Gabriel Jesus, who deserves a mention, started the season very well, but a combination of injury problems and a fall in form leaves him out of this XI, which is the opposite story to Rashford.
