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Alright so this morning I was buzzing about the Girona vs Arsenal friendlies, right? Friendlies can be weird sometimes, managers trying stuff out, maybe throwing a curveball or two into the lineup. The title popped up on my feed: “Girona vs Arsenal Starting XI Any Surprise Picks Today Lineups?” That “Surprise Picks” bit got me hooked instantly. I grabbed my coffee, fired up my trusty laptop, and started digging. This is what went down.
First Off, Hunting Down the Lineups
First step: actually finding the confirmed teams. You’d think it’s easy in 2024, yeah? Nah. Team accounts, legit sports sites, fan forums – I opened a stupid number of tabs. Took me like 20 minutes of clicking and refreshing just to get concrete lists from sources that didn’t look shady. Finally nailed down both starting elevens. My initial reaction? Okay, Arsenal first…
Arsenal’s Starting XI:
- Ramsdale (GK)
- Cedric (RB) – Wait, White’s on the bench?
- Saliba (CB)
- Gabriel (CB)
- Kiwi-or (LB) – Tierney’s back?! Didn’t see that coming.
- Jorginho (DM) – Expected Partey maybe?
- Havertz (CM) – Interesting…
- Ødegaard (CM)
- Saka (RW)
- Trossard (CF) – Wait, Trossard up TOP? Jesus on the bench? 🤯
- Martinelli (LW)
Man, seeing Trossard leading the line instead of Jesus or Nketiah was legit the first proper surprise. He drifts, he links, but a proper number 9? Hmm. Arteta clearly experimenting. And Tierney starting! Been ages, felt good but also a bit “whoa, is Zinchenko hurt?” Cedric over White was another eyebrow-raiser, especially with Tomiyasu also fit.
Then, Girona’s Turn
Scrolled down to Girona. Honestly, I know less about their usual setup week-to-week compared to Arsenal, but even I spotted some curveballs.
Girona’s Starting XI:
- Gazzaniga (GK)
- Arnau (RB)
- Eric Garcia (CB) – Okay, that’s normal.
- Blind (CB)
- Guti (LB)
- Herrera (CM)
- Aleix Garcia (CM) – Key man, expected.
- Tsygankov (RW)
- Sávio (AM/LW)
- Villa (AM/ST) – Portu usually starts here, right?
- Dovbyk (ST)
The big shock for Girona? Seeing Éric García playing as a CENTRAL DEFENDER?! Hold up. This dude spent most of last season playing defensive midfield for them! That was a genuine “wait, what?” moment scrolling down. Blind playing CB felt normal-ish, but García starting at CB definitely raised questions – where’s Bernardo or Juanpe? And David López? Portu starting on the bench was another head-scratcher considering his influence.
Soaking it In and the Immediate Reaction
Sat back, sipped my now-lukewarm coffee. My brain was racing.
- Arsenal: Trossard false nine experiment? Tierney back! Jorginho anchor, Havertz next to Ødegaard? Cedric?! Definitely some testing going on, maybe resting key guys or forcing chemistry in different combos. Felt really experimental.
- Girona: Eric García at CB?? Portu benched? That midfield looked solid, but the backline reshuffle with García dropping deep felt risky. What’s Míchel thinking? Tactical shift for this specific game or a genuine surprise pick?
Honestly, García as CB surprised me more than anything on Arsenal’s sheet. Just felt… counterintuitive based on last season’s regular roles. Trossard up top was close second though.
The Verdict
Alright, title asked “Any Surprise Picks?” Hell yes, there were! Mission accomplished finding them, even if it took some tab-switching chaos. You see Cedric starting for Arsenal against strong opposition? That’s a mild eyebrow raise. Tierney back? A happy surprise. Trossard as the central striker? That’s a proper “Oh! Okay!” kind of surprise. Over on the Girona side, benching Portu? Unexpected. But sliding Eric García back into the heart of the defense when he’s been running the midfield? That’s the genuine shocker pick for me. Both managers definitely threw some unexpected choices out there to see what sticks in this friendly run-out. Makes the game way more interesting now, gotta see how these experiments play out on the pitch! Time to actually watch the match and see if the surprises actually work… or blow up.