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Mikel Arteta maintains that confronting Newcastle without Alexander Isak in its lineup will not make the challenge any less demanding.
Isak, who now plays for Liverpool, had developed into quite a nemesis for Arsenal in recent encounters between the clubs. The Swedish forward netted a spectacular header to secure a 1-0 triumph at St. James' Park last campaign, and he also found the net in the opening leg of the Carabao Cup semifinal at the Emirates.
His displays against two of the finest center-backs in the Premier League - William Saliba and Gabriel - garnered widespread acclaim, establishing Isak as amongst the continent's elite strikers, not merely in England.
Such form resulted in the Gunners being linked with his services before they shifted their focus to compatriot Victor Gyokeres.
Nevertheless, Isak still attracted Liverpool to splash out a British record fee of around $169 million this summer, leaving Newcastle without its star striker.
Yet, despite witnessing Newcastle fail to score in three consecutive away fixtures, Arteta remains convinced the Magpies possess considerable attacking threat.
When questioned whether they represented a different proposition minus the Swede, the Spaniard responded: "No, because he wasn't playing against Barcelona.
"And what it could have been in the first 30 or 40 minutes could be very different to the result."
Both teams understand each other's capabilities intimately, and even minus Isak, Arteta expects Newcastle to maintain their tactical blueprint.
The Arsenal manager has cautioned his players that they need to be alert to the ferocity and speed of Newcastle's attacking players if they want to maintain their challenge to Liverpool at the Premier League summit.
"You have to dominate when you play against them, we have to be ready because they continue so rapidly, so quickly," he said.
"It's a really intense match, we will prepare for that.
"At the end, we know I always praise the work that Eddie [Howe] and the coaching staff have done there.
"We know the test, we know that we're going to have to be much more efficient than we've been lately when we played up there to win the game, and we're going to work on that in the next two days."
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