England left-back Kieran Gibbs looks set to start, while Denmark striker Nicklas Bendtner is in contention for a starting place after his groin injury.
Manager Arsene Wenger is unlikely to risk captain Cesc Fabregas, who has hamstring problems.
Arsenal beat Braga 6-0 in September and could seal a last-16 spot in Portugal.
However, Wenger has warned his team not to be complacent against the Portuguese side, who beat Celtic and Sevilla in the tournament's qualifiers.
The Gunners let their lead slip in their 2-1 Champions League defeat at Shakhtar Donetsk a fortnight ago and lost 3-2 at home to north London rivals Tottenham on Saturday, having been 2-0 up.
"Braga has a good side that in the first 20 minutes of the home game impressed me," said Wenger.
"With what happened to us against Spurs everyone will be focused and want to perform at our best.
"We know we have an opportunity to qualify and people expect us also to bounce back."
Wenger said the injury to Fabregas, who played in Saturday's home defeat against Tottenham, was improving but he did not want to risk him against Braga.
"We cannot afford to lose him, so I check every morning of the game how he is and we monitor him quite well, but it [the injury] is on the way up," he stated.
"Sometimes after the game he has a little recurrence, but at the moment I do not want to take a massive gamble."
The Arsenal manager also believes Fabregas's hamstring troubles, which kept him out for nearly a month between September and October, have affected the Spaniard's state of mind.
"He was out for a while and had a recurrence of his hamstring problem, then it gets in your head," said Wenger.
"When it gets in your head, it is difficult to play free of your mind.
"I feel it is getting better in every match, from game to game he becomes stronger."
If Fabregas does not play, Wenger may decide to to play Denilson alongside Alex Song, pushing Jack Wilshere further forward.
Wenger also said striker Van Persie was not yet back to full fitness after injuring his ankle in August but was being put through his paces in training.
"He is not in a condition physically to fight in the top-level games, so I take advantage of that to make him work very hard," he explained.
"If I go to Braga with him and put him on when he is not 100% on the bench and does not come on, it is a waste of time for three days."
Arsenal will also be without Manuel Almunia (elbow) and Abou Diaby (ankle) for the trip to Portugal.
Thomas Vermaelen (Achilles) is another on the casualty list, while Aaron Ramsey is continuing his rehabilitation from a broken leg.
Source: BBC Sport on 22 Nov 10
No comments:
Post a Comment