Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta faces the most important selection decisions of his managerial career ahead of Saturday’s Champions League final.

The Gunners meet Paris Saint-Germain at the Puskas Arena in Budapest, with Arteta looking to end the club’s long wait for European football’s premier club crown.

Having ended their 22-year wait for the Premier League title, there is confidence that Arsenal are ready to finally conquer Europe’s biggest stage.

Arsenal enter the final as slight underdogs against Luis Enrique’s PSG side, who walloped Inter Milan in last season’s final with a devastating attacking display.

The holders eliminated Bayern Munich in the semi-finals and have no intention of relinquishing their crown without a serious fight.

Arteta cannot afford to get his team selection wrong, with the margins between success and failure expected to be extremely tight in Budapest.

Arsenal are also waiting on Jurrien Timber’s fitness, hoping he is ready to do battle with PSG’s outstanding star Khvicha Kvaratskhelia.

In attack, the decision between Kai Havertz and Viktor Gyokeres carries enormous weight, with both players offering very different qualities to the forward line.

Havertz, a Champions League final scorer for Chelsea previously, brings patience and nuance, while Gyokeres offers pace and power after bullying Atletico Madrid’s defence in the semi-final.

Perhaps the most complex puzzle facing Arteta, however, concerns the makeup of his midfield and how the three available spots are filled.

Martin Odegaard and Declan Rice are certain starters, but the identity of the third midfielder fundamentally changes the complexion of the entire side.

If Martin Zubimendi starts as the No.6, Rice is freed to operate as a No.8, using his physicality, while Odegaard sits higher in his favoured inside right channel.

Starting Eberechi Eze instead would require Rice to operate as the back four’s primary protector, playing in a more reserved and disciplined manner throughout.

That midfield option would also leave pockets either side of Rice more vulnerable to the movement of Ousmane Dembele and Desire Doue for PSG.

A third option mirrors Arsenal’s semi-final approach against Atletico Madrid, deploying Myles Lewis-Skelly alongside Rice as a two-man base in a 4-2-3-1 shape.

That setup would allow Odegaard to operate as a genuine No.10, with Rice and Lewis-Skelly alternating between sitting and pushing forward intelligently.

Zubimendi, excellent in the second half of the Euro 2024 final for Spain against England, was signed specifically to perform in matches of this magnitude.

However, the midfielder has looked tired in recent months, with his general levels dropping after an outstanding first six months following his move to North London.

On paper, Rice, Odegaard and Eze represents the most attacking combination, while pairing Rice with Lewis-Skelly and Odegaard offers the most defensive solidity.

Who Arteta selects in midfield remains one of the most fascinating subplots ahead of a final that carries all the ingredients to be a true classic.

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