It is absolutely crucial for Arsenal to get right back on track in the hunt for a top four finish in the Premier League this season. And we have a great chance to do that with the visit of the division’s bottom club Leicester to the Emirates stadium on Tuesday night but how much should Arsene Wenger ring the changes for that game?
The Gunners should definitely not take this game for granted as the Foxes did what we could not just two weeks ago, by beating the spuds at White Hart Lane. They also drew with Liverpool at Anfield on new years day so that should give everyone fair warning but our own form at home is pretty impressive. Just one unlucky league defeat to Man United all season suggests that we should be too strong.
However, there is also the possibility of tiredness and picking up injuries to consider, with just two days rest before the game. So I think a few changes are needed. With Alexis Sanchez fit he will definitely start and I think Walcott will as well as he only came on as a late sub yesterday. Those two will be fast and fresh and ready to give Leicester all sorts of problems.
Another change that Wenger needs to make is to rest Aaron Ramsey. The Welshman looked off the pace against the spuds and we have the more attacking Tomas Rosicky as the perfect player to replace him. Cazorla got a 25 minute rest so should be fine for Tuesday but Ozil played the whole game and is not long back from injury.
And depending on fitness I would be tempted to rest Giroud and put Welbeck through the middle. Apart from that I would only rest players that really need a break. Maybe Gibbs could come in for Monreal, maybe Chambers for Bellerin and maybe Flamini for Coquelin but only if Wenger feels that there is a fatigue issue or a risk of injury.
Leicester do not have the luxury of squad strength in depth that we do so we may as well make the most of it without making too many sweeping changes. What would you do?
Its the same discussion every season.
Arsenal NEED to make changes.
But nothing ever happens because the manager in charge is incapable of mixing it up.
Same old approach and inherent problems from ten years ago.
He needs to step down because it is apparent to all except the inherently stupid that Arsenal are in decline and have been for a long time.
Time for Wenger to move on – Arsenal NEED a new direction, not just changes.
Hold on you can’t say that, we had a good win vs City…so that means losing to United, Spurs, Southampton, Chelsea, and drawing vs Everton and Liverpool all don’t count.
Another year, another dire record vs the top teams in this league. As a result we are nowhere near title challengers, and are 6th in the league. Piers Morgan is an absolute c**t, but he’s spot on when he says no other “top 4” team would stand by a manager with Wenger’s record the last decade.
He was a revelation his first 8 years at Arsenal, but when Abramovich came in and changed the landscape of European football we never adapted. United got bought, City got bought, Liverpool got bought, PSG got bought, all have had success through investment bar Liverpool. But I look at them and think it’s only a matter of time before they get the right man in charge to spend the money and make up the gap. Us on the other hand?? Silent Stan does nothing, and Wenger sticks to his 2002 principles that no longer work.
Klopp is begging for a change, he came in at Dortmund and turned them from mediocre to brilliant before his team was picked apart. He’s had a nightmare this year, but he’s proven he can win in this era and Dortmund are peasants compared to us financially. Time’s gone for Arsene, just hand it over in the summer and let’s open up a new chapter. This one is dragging on with no end in sight.
He did say that.And Ya forgot to mention your idol Schneniderlin CB
We were just simply horrible yesterday!!! Defence was a shambles most of the time, gave possession away in midfield, took too long on ball in attack just horrible…..We have to find a leader, one who inspires, who players respect and look up to, who commands better performances. AW MUST go all out and get us another top CDM, Le Coq will still grow into this position. I feel our RB and LB were found wanting, gave spuds too much space and time on ball. Simply a massive wake up, hate losing to spuds……
The last ten years have been a massive wake up call yet Arsenal are still soundly asleep.
The solution is not to go out and spend money but rather get in a manager who actually knows what he is doing.
Clearly Wenger has no clue how to install the consistency that will allow us to challenge. One step forward and another back and the fight for forth.
Wenger is not doing a good job – surely there is someone out there who can lead us to a higher place than sixth?
we have never finished 6th under wenger, in fact never 5th, not one other team can claim that since 1996 when wenger took control, are you a complete moron?
I never said we finished in sixth – we ARE in sixth.
And if finishing fourth every year is acceptable to you then you clearly have no ambition for the club you claim support.
Moron eh ?
With no respect whatsoever to you I find that rich coming from someone who calls themselves “luvdaguns” – cretin….
actually me, i am the one who defended arsenal, all your comments are doom and gloom, we have won 4 of the ladt 5, we beat city away, we are still in FA and UCL, what the heck do you want? Spurs are good, and they won 2-1 at their house, we move on… two teams held the significant EPL trophies ladt season, we were one…
Wow. What a consistent under achievement!
It’s not over till fat lady sings.The way you all talk of spending,Leeds top in 70s, Liverpool in top 80s, United in 90s Arsenal 1998to 2005 now Chelsea,City but with Mega bucks Arsenal in top 4 sniffing up there Arse and new stadium and not in debt Look at Liecester at bot but,come Teusday they will bring there fans down and have a good time supporting them even when they loose Stop blaming Wenger it’s the bloody players who need a boot up the arse.We were well beaten but on the day woefull.Aston Villa only lost 2-1,before lost 5-0 So rap up and get behind the club if you are real fans.OUR DAY Will Come and soon CB
Just a thought Ozil cost 42 mill,and is no better now than Podolski.For that money we could buy Shniedelin and a top Striker. Give Akpom a go with Welbeck,Roscicky,Gazola. On bench Ozil Walcott Giriud for last18 mins CB
Wenger out! !
Spurs pinned us down and bombarded relentlessly. The game plan was wrong and Wenger had no answer. Arsenal players seem to run hot and cold an awful lot, one minute they are world beaters next minute ( or game ) you would think it was their first game of football. Maybe they get moved around too much and never get a chance to settle? To my way of thinking Wenger has never implemented a true system of `rotation`. Maybe the word has a different meaning in French?
Sounds crazy I know but I`d sooner play with ten men who are on fire than eleven when one player (who should be replaced but rarely is) is stuffing up the flow. What I`m saying is poor performance players should be replaced earlier in the game, maybe even half time.
I’M NOT AN EXPERT BUT FROM YESTERDAY’S GAME WENGER SHOULD HAVE BEEN MORE RUTHLESS IN HIS DECISION MAKING.THE PROBLEM WAS THAT WE WERE DEFENDING VERY DEEP AND WE WERE UNABLE TO TRASITION(SWITCH BETWEEN DEF MODE AND ATTACK MODE).THAT DUTY LIES ON CARZOLA AND RAMSEY BUT TOTTENHAM HAD A MORE PHYSICAL MIDFIELD AS WE COULD SEE DEMBELE,MASON,MUSCLING OUT OUR CREATIVE MIDFILDER.WE LOST ALL THE MODFIELD BATTLES.WHAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN DONE IS SIMPLE.PULL OUT RAMSEY,BRING IN ROSICKY TO PARTNER COQUELIN.PULL CARZOLA WIDE(TO THE LEFT),BRING IN WALCOTT FOR GIROUD,MOVE WELLBECK TO CF AND LET OZIL PLAY THE CAM ROLE.NOW THIS WOULD DISTABILISE TOTHNAM MIDFIELD BECOS OZIL HAS BETTER ”OFF THE BALL MOVEMENT THAN CARZOLA”.NOW WALCOTT ON THE RIGHT,WELZ MIDDLE SANTI ON THE LEFT WOULD DRAW OUT DEMB,MASON,BENTALEB OUT OF POSITION .WELL THIS IS FOR FUTURE REFERENCE.REMEMBER THE BEST WAY TO BEAT TOTTENHAM IS TO USE THE WINGS.
Ya right Marviniz Ya not an expert,but Ya tried. CB
Let us not be concerned over finishing in the top four for the time being. There are still 42 points to play for as we are all awere. What is of concern to me now after the huge dissapointment we suffered in our big lose at the Lane yesterday, is how the boss will get the Gunners back to their winning ways in our home game against Leicester on Tuesday. And thereafter maintain a winning consistency. I am in total support of the notion to make some changes to the Gunners that played the Spuds. Those Gunners were so disappointing. And I believe the boss must urgently perform a surgical operation in the heart of the Gunners’ team to stop a cardiac arrest of the team. However, I want the boss to still rest Alexis for the Leicester game so as to further cool his hamstring. We needed him most for the big game at the Lane. But we did not have him there. We will need him for the Midlesborough Cup game visit. The normal Gunners with 2 or 3 changes introduced into them should be able to handle the Foxes very well.
Leicester should be a doddle 7-0.
It is getting very VERY SCARY that every young top mananger is out playing wenger,i mean just watch the space pochetino is on to something with spurs,i wish that we do make it to top 4 this season because i hate spurs.wenger knows that he is finished but what he is doing is chasing personal records which is wrong because are in need of young blood
What’s VERY SCARY is ‘every young manager’ (that’s anyone from 10 years upwards who posts on this site) thinks they know the tactical secret to beating every team we play and how to consistently win the PL!
Always comes after the event and always with so many wise words about what we should have done. Opinions are fine, but some genuinely believe that they know the answers…which makes me wonder why if it’s that easy they’re not raking it in as managers of prem teams?! Probably something to do with not letting minors or pre pubescents into the dressing rooms.
We lost! Too many players didn’t deliver on the day, yet our recent form has been pretty decent. By all means disagree, but I suspect our form will be pretty good again during the coming weeks and we’ll move back up the league.
Like Kane this year, Michu (who?) last, Moyes (three seasons ago), Klopp (before the team imploded) etc etc, form is temporary, but class (ie performing year in year out irrespective of the competition), is permanent and a much harder act to perform.
I laughed yesterday when I read Mourhinho saying that City should have had their PL title taken away because they breached ffp! Quote ‘it’s not nice that you have to compete against teams who follow different rules’. Haha. Pot, kettle, black….for erm, let me think, the past ten years or so!
Get over it and have a bit more class than always turning your backs on the club and management or creating fantasy theories about wengers motivation. Zzzzzzzz.
Ospina
Chambers-Per-Kosc-Gibbs
Coq-Rosicky
Walcott-Santi-Alexis
Welbeck
Bellerin is too young to play twice in 3days, Ozil just returned.. They need to rest.