You will not find many Arsenal fans who would disagree with the statement that the France international centre back Laurent Koscielny is the best defender in the Gunners´ squad. And now that our BFG Per Mertesacker seems to have shaken off the dip in form affecting his performances before the international break, that central pairing looks very strong again for Arsenal, just as it did last season when we got so many clean sheets.
But even so, and even if Koscielny is passed fit this week after missing our last game with a thigh problem, I do not think Arsene Wenger should risk him for the trip to Burnley on Saturday. For one thing, we do not have to as we now have the very impressive January transfer signing Gabriel to step in and the Brazilian needs to play and gain Premier League experience.
Another reason though is to err on the side of caution with our best defender as there are bigger and more important games ahead, such as the FA cup semi-final with Reading at Wembley next weekend and the crucial home clash with Chelsea the following week.
How gutted would Wenger be if he played Koscielny this weekend and the Frenchman aggravated his problem or even suffered a recurrence of the ankle ligament problem that has been dogging him? Very gutted indeed I reckon.