Arsenal fans and some football pundits may be expecting the Gunners to run riot again on Wednesday when Basel come to north London for the second Champions League group game, but Arsene Wenger is certainly not taking the game for granted and with good reason too.
As reported by the Evening Standard our manager was quick to point out the brilliant recent run of results that the Swiss champions have enjoyed against clubs from the English Premier League, which includes victories over Liverpool, Chelsea and Man United.
Wenger will no doubt be trying to instil in his players the need for full focus in midweek but I wonder what the Frenchman is thinking about squad rotation. We do have a heavy schedule ahead of us, but not until after the next international break.
There is an EPL game at the weekend to consider but it is the late Sunday kick off and against Burnley so I do not think we need to make any changes other than Xhaka for the injury hit Coquelin. The only other one I would consider is Elneny for Cazorla, to keep the Spaniard fresh and also to exploit the extra energy you often get when a player faces his former club.
What do you think Gooners, should Wenger field his strongest possible Arsenal XI to face Basel?
Bob.