The Gunners will kick start their title defence with a fixture against fellow Premier League side Sunderland as they hope to win the crown for the third consecutive year. Arsene Wenger's men are among the favourites for the league crown and are currently top of the table. There have been a few suggestions that this might result in Arsenal taking the cup competition less seriously however Wenger has assured that his side will do all they can to make it three FA Cup titles in a row.
"Of course there is extra pressure because we won the competition last season," he said.
"Being the holders, we want to stay in the competition and do it again if possible.
"I don’t see why the FA Cup should be ostracised because of the Premier League.
"We want to go for the competition and go for it 100 per cent."
The Gunners recorded a 3-1 win over Sunderland earlier in the season but Wenger expects a tricky outing against the Black Cats.
"We have learned Sunderland are very dangerous on the counter-attack. It was a very hard-fought win against them [last time]," he added.
"I do not expect any weaknesses from Sam Allardyce. His team will be focused no matter what.
"Managers do not play weaker teams in the cup because everyone has 25 players of Premier League quality."
Wenger himself is expected to rest a couple of first team players with one eye on the midweek fixture against Liverpool. One man who is unlikely to start is French international Mathieu Debuchy who has played second fiddle to young Hector Bellerin who is likely to get the nod ahead of the former Newcastle man.
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The defending champions will however not be able to use the services of star players Alexis Sanchez who according to Wenger is not fully fit. Arsenal will continue to be without the likes of Tomas Rosicky, Santiago Cazorla, Jack Wilshere, Danny Welbeck and Francis Coquelin but captain Mikel Arteta is poised to return.
Sunderland's 3-1 win over Aston Villa last time out came after four successive defeats which has left them second bottom in the Premier League. The Black Cats will be without Younes Kaboul, Sebastian Larsson, Adam Matthews and Jack Rodwell for the important match against Arsenal.
Which channel is broadcasting Arsenal vs Sunderland on TV or Online?
- In US at 10:00 EST: on Fox Deportes, Fox Soccer 2GO USA, Fox Sports 1 USA, Fox Sports GO
- In UK at 15:00 BST: on BBC Radio
- In Canada at 10:00 EST: on Sportsnet World, Sportsnet World Now
Watch the match live as the Gunners begin their title defence. Fans in Australia can watch the match live on ESPN Australia, whereas those in the African countries can follow the action on SuperSport 3 Africa. For a comprehensive listing of global broadcast listings, visit the Arsenal vs Sunderland match page.
*NOTE: Live broadcast data is subject to change.
Team sheets for Arsenal vs Sunderland
Arsenal's XI: Cech; Bellerin, Gabriel, Koscielny, Gibbs; Chambers, Oxlade-Chamberlain; Iwobi, Campbell, Walcott; Giroud.
Sunderland's XI: Pickford, van Aanholt, Cattermole, O'Shea, Lens, Graham, Toivonen, Coates, Fletcher, Yedlin, Watmore.
Arsenal's subs: Macey, Debuchy, Arteta, Ramsey, Monreal, Reine-Adelaide, Willock.
Sunderland's subs: Mannone, Jones, Borini, Defoe, M'Vila, Mavrias, Beadling.
Match details, result and original broadcast info
This match has ended. Below are the original Live broadcast details for this match.
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