After a gruelling run of Premier League games, Arsene Wenger can at last give some Arsenal first team players a much-needed rest as we travel to the City ground to take on Nottingham Forest in the Third Round of the FA Cup.
Our team is likely to be yet another makeshift side as we have lost quite a few senior players to injury in the last few weeks, with Saed Kolasinac the latest victim to join the ranks on the treatment table. Arsenal Wenger told the media this morning. “From before Chelsea, nothing has changed,” he said. “Kolasinac, Koscielny, Monreal, Ramsey, Giroud are all out.
“From Wednesday night we certainly lose Granit Xhaka, who finished with a tight groin.
“I will rotate a little bit because play three games in six days.”
So it will not be anywhere near our best team against the Championship side, but who is Wenger likely to play. We certainly won’t be putting out just academy players in a competition we have won for the last two years but it is hardly going to be as strong as usual.
The players I expect to see will include Ospina, Mertesacker, Danny Welbeck, Theo Walcott, Francis Coquelin, Mathieu Debuchy, Elneny, Reiss-Nelson and maybe Ben Sheaf and Reine-Adelaide. We are very short of defenders so Wenger may have to send out Chambers and Holding to play alongside the BFG.
Who do you think will make up our starting XI on Sunday?
Admin
Ospina
Debuchy Mertesacker Holding
Nelson elneny coquelin da silva
Walcott welbeck iwobi
Macey Bielik Sheaf willock Adelaide akpom nketiah
Yes, I think Wenger would most likely use that line-up and formation. But I think he would ask Maitland-Niles to play as the left wingback again, unless Kolasinac is still unavailable for the League Cup Semifinal.
I want to see how Walcott, Welbeck, Iwobi, Coquelin, Elneny and Nelson work to impress their manager this time.
We need to rotate and rest our first team players
Our B team players need to step up….Forest would be a good test
Why can’t the Greek feller play? He’s going out on loan anyway so him playing in a FA Cup match wouldn’t be such a gamble IMO. It’s not like he hasn’t played all season.
I reckon:
—————– Ospina
—– Debuchy – Mertesacker – Holding
Nelson – Elneny – Coquelin—– Maitland
——— Walcott – Iwobi
————– Welbeck
AMN deserves to be rested as he’s played full 90mins in the last two games. A left back from the U23 should get a chance.
We can’t risk AMN as we may end up with no left backs at all for Chelski!
Just worried about ball retention and creativity with this line up so maybe we should unleash Adelaide instead of Walcott? This would give Walcott the necessary incentive to request a move away…
We should rest first team and focus on the semifinal!
After the defensive shambles against Liverpool and Chelsea surely Wenger will revert to a conventional back four against a Championship side?
No am afraid, it’ll be 217.
Rotation? B team? First team players? Am I missing something here? After our latest performances I don’t think we have a “B” team or an “A” team or can we afford to rotate our “first team” players. Presently I think we are just a 6th or 7th position team,