Theo Walcott fears for Arsenal star against Liverpool after William Saliba red card

Former Arsenal striker Theo Walcott believes that Liverpool has been handed a huge advantage after William Saliba was shown a straight red card against Bournemouth . The Frenchman will now be suspended for next weekend's massive fixture at the Emirates.

When Leandro Trossard's pass sailed over his head, Saliba had to haul down Evanilson to prevent the Bournemouth attacker racing through on David Raya's goal. After he was initially shown a yellow card, Saliba saw red when the referee, Rob Jones, took a second look at the incident via the VAR screen .

It means he will miss three domestic fixtures, starting with Liverpool next Sunday. Saliba will also be absent for games against Preston North End in the Carabao Cup and Newcastle United in the Premier League .

"I would probably move Riccardo Calafiori in [to center-back]," Walcott said on Sky Sports when talking about how Mikel Arteta can fix the problem. "I would be worried about Mohamed Salah’s pace against him because Calafiori isn’t the fastest.

"And maybe bring in the experience of Oleksandr Zinchenko. They might need more of a talker, someone who knows this sort of fixture and the importance of it. Mikel knows that. It is one of those where they really need to get a result."

Jamie Redknapp was quick to remind Walcott about the time Salah tormented Zinchenko in the same fixture last year. And the pundits agreed that Jurrien Timber, the defender who missed the defeat at Bournemouth through injury, could be another option.

"Zinchenko had a lot of problems against Salah last year," Redknapp said. "Just having that one player not available disrupts everything." Walcott added: "They have to get Jurrien Timber back."

Liverpool.com says: There is no doubt that Saliba will be a big miss for Arsenal. The Reds will need to take advantage with a victory away at a title rival a huge points swing in any Premier League title race.