It was rumoured that the new Arsenal Number One was injured after the weekend’s game at Palace, but Arsene Wenger has made it clear that he is ready to lay. Wenger was asked about Szczesny at the pre-game press conference.
He said: “I worry about every single player in my squad and I want every single player to be happy but at the end of the day only 11 players can start the game. That’s the same for every single player. We have competition for places and that’s part of our job. I don’t think that’s a special worry.”
And David Ospina? “He’s fit. He trained.”
A typical Wenger non-committal response, but I think that quite clearly means that Ospina will be on the pitch tonight. In a separate post, Ospina himself has been talking about the battle for the starting spot. He said: “As a team, we do have a strong and healthy competition between myself, Wojciech and Emiliano so that is something that inspires us all to always be there and giving it 100 per cent in training sessions.
“In a team like Arsenal and this level, you need to have very good goalkeepers like you have in all the major football teams. Both goalkeepers really need to be ready to react very well. You need to be that prepared and committed so you can continue to play.”
I must admit that I personally am relieved that Ospina will be playing as I have lost confidence in Szczesny for the moment. I am sure he will get some more chances to impress but Wenger does not seem to be sensitive when it comes to his goalkeepers. Once he’s made a decision he sticks to it unless they make a seris of gaffes (like Szczesny did!)