Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain will meet with the top spot in Group A of the 2016-17 UEFA Champions League on the line on Wednesday, as the two giants square off at the Emirates Stadium. Both teams have already secured their spot in the first knockout round with victories in match day four. Nothing could split the two teams so far with the two neck and neck on 10 points. When they played each other at Parc des Princes in September the match ended 1-1, that result a further sign of how well-matched these two sides are.

Having proved too strong for Basel and Ludogorets, the other two teams in the pool, Arsenal and PSG are fighting for the top spot, potentially meaning an easier passage through the knockout phase during the spring.

Team News: Arsenal

Arsenal will miss a host of players for this pivotal clash. Hector Bellerin, Santi Cazorla and Lucas Perez among the latest casualties to join long-term absentees Danny Welbeck and Per Mertesacker are sidelined with injuries. Forward Alexis Sanchez should be able to start, but he didn’t seem fully recovered from the knock he picked up during the match Manchester United at the weekend.

Arsenal entered the international break in excellent form, but their previous match, a 1-1 draw at Old Trafford may be a cause of concern for Arsene Wenger.

The Gunners have dominated teams this season by winning the midfield battle, executing breaks quickly and working the wings with patience. The absence of Cazorla means Arsenal will have to dig deep in midfield to combat the strong duo of Marco Verratti and Thiago Motta. The Italian in particular runs PSG’s midfield, and stopping him with a double defensive wall of Granit Xhaka and Francis Coquelin may not be a bad idea.

On the other side of the pitch, Wenger will have some choices to make against the rock-solid duo of Marquinhos and Thiago Silva. The more physical Giroud could be a better option against PSG’s mobile center-backs, allowing the Gunners to fire in cross after cross and rely on the Frenchman to do what he does best.

Arsenal’s unbeaten run stretches back to the opening day of the Premier League season – but there have been more draws on the Gunners’ results card in recent weeks. Wenger will be desperate to finish top having only managed to do so once in the last six seasons, leading to a number of tough draw in the round of 16. 

Team News: Paris Saint-Germain

PSG have arguably been in slightly better shape than Arsenal in recent weeks. Unai Emery’s PSG have been excellent for some time, winning all but one of their matches since the shock loss against Toulouse in September. Les Parisiens may have not made a great start to the season, but they’re one of the in-form teams on the continent right now.

But PSG also have several question marks. Angel Di Maria left the pitch during the first half in the win against Nantes, and Javier Pastore and Adrien Rabiot are expected to miss out on the match. Alphonse Areola and Layvin Kurzawa are again question marks.

One of the keys has been PSG’s depth, with the team barely losing a step whenever a starter drops out with an injury. Kevin Trapp has been overshadowed by star youngster Areola this season. Aided by Verratti and Matuidi, Rabiot helps form a midfield that looks a lot more balanced than Arsenal’s going into this match.

It’s understandable that Arsenal are favourites given they have home advantage but there’s so little to pick between these sides, there are really no strong reasons to back the hosts.