Arsène Wenger has done his bit, now it’s time for Arsenal’s youngsters to show what they are all about as the Carling Cup returns this evening with Sheffield United looking to edge out the Gunners at the Emirates Stadium.
An almost packed house awaits the youngest squad in the Club’s history after ticket prices were lowered, so it promises to be a baptism of fire for Wengers boys. Some of the players in the squad are yet to even start for the Reserve team, but with this group having impressed over pre-season, the boss is willing to give them an opportunity to make a name for themselves.
Some may accuse Wenger of disrespecting the competition with such a youthful side, yet the fact 8 of the 18 in the squad have come through the Academy, shows the faith and the quality of the system.
In terms of team news, the squad has been confirmed, but as yet who will play is unknown. Lukasz Fabianski is expected to continue between the sticks after last season’s tournament, he will have an extremely young back four in front of him.
Johan Djourou will captain the party but where he will play is subject of debate. An all British midfield is also set to take centre stage, in front of young forwards Bendtner and Vela.
Predicted Starting XI
Fabianski
Djourou (c) – Hoyte – Song – Gibbs
Lansbury – Randall – Ramsey – Wilshere
Bendtner – Vela
Subs – Mannone, Ogogo, Coquelin, Thomas, Merida, Frimpong, Simpson
Prediction – Arsenal 2-1 Sheffield United
Arsenal TV is the only place to watch the full 90 minutes live this evening, but UK viewers can watch Highlights on ITV1 and Sky Sports News shortly before 00:00. Should you not be able to reach either, an in depth Match Report will be available seconds after the Full Time whistle.
Article By – J.Sanderson
Rui Fonte out?
To bad this game isn’t being shown on TV so I can watch it over the net. I finally feel that this year the Carling Cup will be Arsenal’s for the taking. We have a talented group of kids and I am excited about these kids and the future of our great club!
I think the line-up will be:
Fab
Hoyte, Djourou, Song, Gibbs
Wilshere, Ramsey, Randall, Mérida
Bendtner, Vela
I read at the official site that Lansbury isn’t “big enough” yet after his illness, so I don’t think that he will play from the start against a CCC-team, because he’s not that fit yet.
I wonder where this Frimpong comes from, I mean, where is Murphy, Herschel or Bartley? No one to cover at the back line if an injury shows up
if this is the team, how is jay simpson going to feel about being left out in favour of a 16yr old and a CM playing as a RW? He played both roles for Milwall last yr, and played well. Surely he will get the nod? Otherwise, what is the point of the age factor you’ve been talking about before, enabling the older contracted players an opportunity before younger players??
I don’t think the game is live on AFC TV. I thought they were showing the match in full at 12am. It is not live anywere
is it being shown live on arsenal tv?
interesting that Ogogo is there instead of Bartley…is he injured or something? Hope Wilshere has a good match…could end up in Cappello’s plans come end of the season maybe?
It is being shown in full on arsenal tv online but not until after midnight ken
Ogogo effectively offers the defensive cover since Djourou can play anywhere at the back.
should be a great game.
would quite like to see Coquelin start the game.
@ Lurrtz
Who is Herschel? I pride myself on knowing a fair bit about our youth products and honestly have no idea who you mean! Are you confusing the SA cricketer Gibbs with our Keiran Gibbs by chance? If you are mate, Gibbs (the footballing one) is in the squad.
I believe the team would be
Fabianski
Hoyte/Lansbury, Djourou, Song, Giggs
Ramsey Merida Randall/Wilkishere Vela
Simpson Bendtner
Nick
I take it you mean Gibbs, not Giggs
Herschel is Sanchez Watt Name
I hope that we won’t see Randall in there, but I guess that’s just hope. I would like to see the midfield like this:
Lansbury–Merida–Ramsey–Wilshere
But I guess that’s only in my dreams. I just don’t rate him very highly and the England’s national teams coaches agree with me. There is a reason the kid has never been called up for U-17, U-19 or U-21. He simply isn’t good enough for Arsenal and never will be. Lansbury and Merida are by far superior players and should always get the nod ahead of Mark.
I guess I will have to subscribe to ATVO for this one. Have fun watching guess, I know I can’t wait for it.
Ps. JS, good idea to cover the CC and very good job indeed. I think you would have had your forum filled with CC discussions anyway so people do appreciate this effort.
Fabianski
Hoyte Jnr.-Song – Djourou(c) – Gibbs
Randall – Merida- Ramsey – Wilshere
Bendtner – Vela
Unbelievable talents at this stage for the Arsenal. History will define this day, when true the nature of a football club was defined, by the genius and vision of Arsene Wenger.
Even moreso with the future 1st teamers M.I.A, Senderos(Maldini skoolin’), Traore, Barazite, Norvdtveit, Freeman(remember him?),
who i’d miss? UNBELIEVABLE!!!
interesting to see how the youth of manU, liverpool, chelsea do(if they have any).
Arsene always knew.
SNIPER10
Nick I’ll guarantee Vela starts upfront, if Simpson plays, and thats a big if, it’ll be on the wing. The reason thats a big if is simply because Ramsey, Wilshere and Randall are certain starters you would think, they are certainly the most senior players given their involvement with the first team. That leaves just one midfield spot up for grabs with Merida, Lansbury and Coquelin all strong canidates to take it. The question then becomes is Simpson ahead of those 3 and I would have to say no he isn’t and I think Wenger would agree with me on that. The only way I see him playing is if Wenger decides he wants his physicality in the game ahead of actual ability with the ball, in a similar way to Eboue being prefered to Walcott in more physical games. My guess is it’ll be Merida having been named checked by le boss yesterday.
Cheers Frank I’ve only ever seen or heard him being called Sanchez! He is injured isn’t he?
Will ATVO (not just Arsenal TV) be showing the FULL game as well after midnight? If so, I may subscribe to it. Please respond :)
anyone have a good live stream link? If Vela starts i bet he puts in at least 2.
I acutally remenber him playing in the under 18s just gone so I assume not just has not been picked ,
yes ATVO will show the full 90 mins click on the live button when you subscribe.. it shows ATV
Coquelin and Frimpong in there ahead of James Dunne? I think that signals the end for him. I’m rather pissed of at that because Frimpong has another couple of years to shine in the Carling Cup yet this is a make or break season for Dunne.
It says highlights from midnight online, not the full game :s
will it be actually live tonight then on arsenal tv
or just commentry
u can watch the full 90 mins after 12.00am… i think there might be live commentary
I would really like to see Lansbury play in his central midfield role with Ramsey.
I doubt it will happen though.
Stone , Randall has played for England at U-17 level.
http://www.thefa.com/NR/rdonlyres/A8EE5933-251D-4462-8A24-9A0D8D984CA2/64136/MarkRandall_H.jpg
http://www.thefa.com/England/U17s/NewsAndFeatures/Postings/2005/08/EngU17_vFinland_Aug05.htm
Another link:
http://www.thefa.com/England/U17s/NewsAndFeatures/Postings/2005/08/EngU17_vFaroeIs_Aug05.htm
bbc sheffield have live commentary if that helps
I believe Arsenal TV the channel are showing it live, but Arsenal TV Online are just offering live Audio.
ATVO will show the full game later on.
this wont be a guarantied win. Sheffield is a good team and this is our reserve team… :S
anyone got any links for the game tonight?
James you too the words out of my mouth , I feel it for James Dunne right now
i really love the game of the young gunners.i believe they are going to shoot without fear. am behind them for life……..
Why is it that Arsenal don’t seem to produce too many quality defenders from the youth ranks, while there seems to be an abundance of attacking quality emerging?
Personally I don’t see Gibbs/Hoyte ever really being a permanent 1st team fixture…
The reason is probably over emphasis in attacking qualities which is why Arsenal are so good to watch I guess, but it sure would be great if we had a Tony Adams reincarnation with pace emerge through the youth system!
2-0 Arsenal – Vela x 2
it is not on Arsenal tv channel live the full 90 mins will be on at 12 on the tv channel
there’ll be live commentary on five live btw
I’ve checked the Arsenal TV (Setanta) guide and the game doesn’t seem to be on. Can anyone confirm?
Arsenal TV Online are showing it live, but Arsenal TV the channel will re-air the full match at midnight. That is how I heard it last.
Yep, I checked on my TV.
It isn’t being shown on Arsenal TV, the whole match will be avaliable at midnight though.
FAO Wengersbrian – Randall may have turned out for the u17s at some point but it passed me by as well. A lot of players get a bit of a try out but then aren’t asked back. This would appear to have been the case with Randall. Hence he’s never even made an U19 squad.
James and Frank by all means feel sorry for James Dunne, or Simpson for that matter in Franks case, but don’t be angry about it and certainly don’t be angry with Wenger for not picking them. He picks players using 3 criterias and 3 criterias only; how good they are now, what their future potential is and how they are physically. That is it and that is absolutely how it should be. So if he picks Frimpong and Coquelin ahead of Dunne, there are reasons for doing so and they are the right reasons. Selecting a player because it is a make or break season for him is folly. Just like selecting a player just because they’ve been at the club since they were nine would be. To often I hear/read about a player “deserving” to play, more often than not it’s utter nonsense, you only deserve to play if you are good enough and better than those you are competing with, you don’t deserve to play because you are older than another player or have been at the club longer (unless we are talking cup finals for established players, there is some scope for it in that situation). Think about it a second, if you’re only selecting Dunne because Frimpong has more time to make his mark, then Dunne has already lost that battle to Frimpong hasn’t he? To me it only goes to enforce the decision to pick Frimpong over Dunne in the first place. How would picking Dunne be the best thing for the club? We don’t owe any young player anything, they get arguably the best footballing education in the world and for a top club we give far more opportunities for young players to show what they can do than most clubs, but ultimately the players are here for the club not the other way round. Or to put it another way, Wenger doesn’t owe Dunne or Simpson a chance, he is there to do the best thing for Arsenal FC not the best thing for either of those players.
I am sure hoping ATVO are showing the game live as it was the reason I subscribed to it.
As if spoken from my own lips Pete. Well said
According to this its on Arsenal TV at midnight
http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/arsenal-v-sheffield-utd-only-on-arsenal-tv
You can also watch it online at that time by watching the live Arsenal TV feed
Team is confirmed
————-Fabianski——————–
Hoyte – Song – Djourou – Gibbs
Wilshere – Ramsey – Randall – Merida
————Bendtner – Vela————–
Subs:
Mannone
Emmanuel-Thomas
Ogogo
Frimpong
Coquelin
Lansbury
Simpson
Fabianski
Hoyte .-Song – Djourou – Gibbs
Wilshere -Randall – Ramsey – merida
Bendtner – Vela
From what I saw on Arsenal.com this will be the starting XI. Not exactly sure if this is the right formation though.
………..Fabianski………
…Hoyte…Djourou…Song…Gibbs
Randall…Wilshere…Ramsey…Merida
…….Bendtner….Vela………
Ok so I was kind of right then lol.
anyone else find it sad to see jay simpson go from league1 player of the year to carling cup sub?
Not in the least, tkn. I wish people would notice that Jay Simpson was voted for this award by the fans on an internet poll. It’s pretty clear that a fair few gooners got involved in the voting, so it’s a bit of a misleading accolade.
Not when it is Carling cup sub for Arsenal tkn. It’d be sad if he were still at Millwall. Look in the comments section of the thread 2 down from this for my reasons why, think its called something like “which youngsters will play in the carling cup?”. I’m not going to repeat myself again. The gist is basically that winning the pfa fans player of the year award for division 1 does not mean you are good enough for Arsenal. You only have to look above for my thoughts on when players “deserve” to play.
Exactly Big Al. The best player in division 1 last year was Luke Beckett, indeed he won the football league award voted by members. Funny how no Arsenal fans are clamouring for his signature, yet you’ll see some fans, many of whom wouldn’t even have a clue who Beckett even is, go as far as suggest Simpson should not only be in our first team squad but should play too, their reasoning being almost always entirely based on him having won that award. It beggars belief.
i wasn’t aware that the fans voted for his award, but my point was more that he was playing week in week out in a competative league which can only aid his development. i’m a big fan of his and really hope he makes something of himself, but i don’t see how going back to playing for the reserves and sitting on the bench in the carling cup will be very beneficial for him. especially given the massive strength in depth we currently have up front (injuries permitting). he’s in a strange position given his age relative to the rest of the reserve team squad.
1-0 bendtner
I just subscribed to ATVO. Really hoping the full game will be shown online later rather than just highlights… anyone know?
As far as i’m aware the full match will be shown on ATVO later on.
Simpson should be playing more , reminds me of the andy cole story
2-0 bendtner
3-0 vela
3-0 VELA!!
3-0 vela
4-0 vela
4-0 vela
Wow, nice stuff :D It is so frustrating not being able to watch this :/ Seeing all those youngsters in action would be great!
5-0 wilshere
Haha, why am i not surprised by the fact that he scored? :P
Wilshere is good enough for the England U-21. He should be an ever present in our squad, no question about that.
Why do they have to pick this game for not airing? There is no justice in the world. Well, I can’t wait for tomorrow. I’m gonna sit with my laptop, not paying any attention in class and just enjoy all the whole match.
Wow, nice stuff! So gutted that I can’t watch this amazing match!
WENGER should do some changes nothing to lose
I agree with Frank_Butcher. There is time to give some of the “young” players a chance, haha.
Wilshere is going down the exact same path that Fabregas went through. The exception is that Fabregas scored on his second CC game, Jack on his first.
Anyway can anyone confirm if Wilshere is the youngest goalscorer for Arsenal now?
He is the second youngest, Fabregas was younger when he scored against Wolves almost five years ago.
At least let Simpson have a run about , show his worth its all good gaining a experience from the bench , Lansbury , Simpson should come on
Cant see why Arsene wont bring them on
haha frank, when talking of the sun…
lool , Simpson , Coquelin , Lansbury on
Song , Merida , Bendenter Off
haha when i uploaded arse.com it was only written Lansbury & Simpson!
updated*
6-0… gotta love it!
6-0 vela
Vela Hat-Trick!
Simpson is crap.
He’ll never get ahead of Walcott, Bendtner and Vela. He should be sold.
Arsenal winning 6 to nil. NB 2; C.Vela 3; Wilshere 1.
who saw the bendtner interview?
LMFAO
Brilliant result and it sounded like the little herberts done us proud. Unfortunately i had to listen to it on the radio, well, untill the powers that be took the broadcast to “old traffic”. Can anyone tell me if the highlights are on tonight on terestial?
Tobzz