Arsenal continue their early-season cup journey on Tuesday when they travel to Portman Road to face Ipswich Town in the Carabao Cup, the latest stop in a run of away fixtures that has already taken Mikel Arteta's side to Naples and Sunderland this season.
With a heavily rotated squad expected, the tie represents more than just a step towards a potential deep run in the competition. For several fringe players who have struggled to force their way into Arteta's Premier League plans, it offers a rare chance to make a case for more regular involvement.
Arteta has been largely consistent with his starting XI in the league so far, which has left a number of talented individuals fighting for minutes. That is especially true in midfield, where Martin Zubimendi finds himself in an unfamiliar position. The Spaniard has yet to start a single match this season, with all five of his appearances coming from the bench, three of them in the closing ten minutes.
The contrast with last season is stark. At the same stage a year ago, Zubimendi had started and played all 90 minutes in Arsenal's opening five matches. Now he sits behind both Myles Lewis-Skelly and Bruno Guimaraes in the midfield hierarchy, a reflection of the squad depth Arteta has built. While that competition for places is viewed as a positive for the club overall, given how Zubimendi's form dipped last season after a heavy workload, the midfielder will be eager to remind his manager of his qualities with a strong showing against Ipswich.
Up front, Viktor Gyokeres faces his own challenge to reassert himself. The Swedish striker has failed to appear off the bench in three of Arsenal's four league games this season, and in the one match he did feature, the win over Chelsea, he was afforded just 12 minutes. His struggles to link up with Arsenal's build-up play have become more pronounced as Kai Havertz continues to impress in the same role.
Despite his lack of minutes, Gyokeres is expected to see more game time as the season progresses across four competitions, particularly given Havertz's history of injury problems. When his chance comes, however, he will need to deliver in front of goal. Notably, 11 of his 14 Premier League goals last season came against teams in the bottom half of the table, suggesting a fixture against Ipswich could be the ideal stage for him to rediscover his scoring touch.
Eberechi Eze's situation carries its own significance heading into the tie. Since his arrival, his opportunities have mostly come on the left wing, though Christos Tzolis remains the first-choice option in that position. Eze had a quiet outing against Napoli and has otherwise had limited impact in his cameo appearances.
Tzolis has thrived recently by drifting infield from the left flank to combine with captain Martin Odegaard, setting up three of his four assists for the Norwegian. It is a role that would appear to suit Eze's skill set, allowing him freedom to operate centrally while nominally playing on the left. However, he has yet to show the kind of form that would push him ahead of Tzolis in the pecking order, and this Ipswich fixture is seen as an important opportunity for him to demonstrate he can be more than just a squad rotation option.
For Arsenal, the trip to Suffolk is as much about individual redemption as it is about progressing in the competition, with Arteta likely to watch closely how his fringe players respond to the chance in front of them.
Based on reporting from standard-football.