Arsène Wenger is set to rotate his squad for tomorrow’s F.A Cup third round encounter with West Ham United, with a selection of his out-of-favour first-team set to be mixed with a scattering of young Carling Cup talent.
Wenger previously admitted his desire to play his strongest possible XI in a bid to claim the hallowed trophy, but a re-emergence in the Premier League title race has changed the Frenchman’s thinking. Arsenal’s F.A Cup campaign, especially in the early rounds, will now play host to the cream of the crop of Carling Cup talents along with a selection of more experienced players.
Competition will be fierce. Craig Eastmond and Francis Coquelin are both battling hard to be the ‘internal solution’ to Alexandre Song’s absence, while a plethora of attacking talent, which includes Jack Wilshere, Fran Mérida, Jay Emmanuel-Thomas, Sanchez Watt and the returning Nacer Barazite, will all be vying for potential starting and substitute places.
But who do you think deserves a chance to prove themselves and who could really buckle down a place in the side in the coming months? leave your answers in the comment section below.
Article By – J.Sanderson
Jay Simpson scored the 1:0 for QPR in the FA Cup.
most football players take abuse in a good way.
Bendtner
Eboue
Song
Denilson
Diaby
all took heaps of abuse but are now better players because of it.
West Ham United: Green, Faubert, Tomkins, Upson, Daprela, Kovac, Behrami, Stanislas, Diamanti, Jimenez, Nouble
Subs: Stech, N’Gala, Da Costa, Payne, Lee, Edgar, Sears
Arsenal: Fabianski, Sagna, Gallas, Vermaelen, Silvestre, Ramsey, Song, Merida, Wilshere, Eduardo, Vela
Subs: Mannone, Gilbert, Diaby, Nasri, Traore, Eastmond, Emmanuel-Thomas
wilshere and merida having shockers.
Damn we R crap
Wenger needs to take off Merida and Wilshere for Diaby and Nasri right now before it’s too late for anyone to change the game.
we are playing so poor yet people here were suggestig Freeman, Afobe, Henderson, Randall, Coquelin, Barazite, etc. Not saying those youngsters don’t have ability – but they are simply not up for it.
The team that started had poor balance bcuz we had 6 left footers [who cant use their weak foot]in the team
Ramsey is a glimmering sense of hope!
Am I the only person who thinks Merida is crap…? I never see reserve games, but any time I see him on the big stage he blows it! Ramsey on the otherhand…
wilshere has alot of wor to do…no room for merida im afraid…ever
Oguzhan Ozyakup deserves a chance! This guy has a super pass-ability and shoot.
I hope that that performance by Jack Wilshere will kill the idea that he is now ready to play in the first team.
Jack Wilshere was poor, too showy and not enough direct. He needs at least a year on loan in a team playing proper football (maybe Burnley but not Stoke, Birmingham). Even dropping a division and play at championship level may do him good as it would force him to play more direct football.
Merida was also having a poor day at the office, however Vela and Eduardo were shockingly poor. Nothing stuck upfront. Merida has still a deficit physic for the premiership. He is too often pushed around.
When Diaby and Nasri were introduced, they changed the game.
Diaby dominated the two West-Ham anchormen (Kovac and Bahrami).
Diaby and Nasri created a better link between the midfield and Vela and Eduardo.
Eduardo shockingly poor, you’re kidding right? In the end it’s the scoreline that matters and on the game winner alone he deserves way better than a pass mark. It was far from an easy header and he did extremely well to net it.
I think Merida isnt going to make it,
Alot of our YoungGuns wont,
Ramsey will, Wilshere will, but he needs experience,
All our Youngsters need to prove themselves.
Wilshere doesn’t need to play more direct. He just had a poor game, mainly because he is seventeen and the game was physically very intense, specially in the first half.
Hehe look at my comment I made at 5:19 pm :P
Well predicted Tony!!
It was good to see the younger lads out there in a real game. Not a Carling Cup game against dis-interested mid-table Championship sides at the Emirates but a real blood and guts (or what classes for that these days) cup-tie. Maybe all those well meaning experts who think that half of our reserve team can just walk into our team and become world class overnight will have got a dose of reality today. Wilshere is at least a year away, Merida looks out of his depth and Vela… touch and go. Ramsey however is quality. A big game player and a match winner. Shame he’s not English!
Have to agree that Fran and Jack looked out of their depth. Disappointing when u consider WHam had some first timers in their team. I think they both need to play regularly at this level now so we can assess just how inconsistent their performances are. I think both players are 2 years away from being in the squad.
On a bright note Vela impressed when moved to LW and Ramsey should overtake Denilson in the CM pecking order by next season. The amount of goals and assists he has compared to the mins he plays is fantastic.
but what is the point critising players at this level if they are bound to recieve it later on in thier careers anyway right now they are only developing players so they are there most fragile. you have to remember some of them are still teenagers and are only human, im pretty sure if you lots were constantly critisized in your profession would not take kindly to it. its hard trying to become a top level footballer without idiot comments from ppl who have most probably never played a real game of football in thier life.
Vela and Eduardo shockingly poor? You must have turned off the TV at half time. They were largely uninvolved and unspectacular, though not shockingly poor, in the first half because both were being played out of position and sub-standard service. Though, I find it hard to describe the player who assisted both goals (Vela) and the player that scored the winner (Eduardo) against an EPL squad as shockingly poor.
Vela completely terrorized West Ham after he was moved to the left wing. You wouldn’t have expected it, but they almost forgot about Nasri on the right as they fed Vela over and over to good effect. I hope Wenger doesn’t play him as the spear-tip of our 4-3-3 again, unless out of necessity. It squanders much of his abilities, somewhat like it does for Arshavin.
As far as Eduardo goes, he’s not a left-winger, especially with his diminished pace (though Wenger says he’s recovering more and more) post-injury. And while they haven’t all been spectacular, that’s 3 goals in 4 matches for Eduardo. Hopefully that’ll give him the confidence to bang chances in for the rest of the season.
I disagree about vela, he is a centre forward, and not a left winger. he can do a job there cause he is very quick, but he is much more impressive playing upfront
He can’t play (well) alone as a striker, that’s why I said “play him as the spear-tip of our 4-3-3”. I do believe that he, like Arshavin, can play well as a second-striker in a system with 2 stikers, as he’s always done in the Carling Cup (last season and this season when he came on against WBA), except vs. Man City where he played alone and lost. I can’t think of a single time where he has played well as a lone striker and that’s including when he’s with Mexico.
Ok I misread your post sorry. He is not the lone striker type I agree
He is more a natural goalscorer than Arshavin though, who is much more creative and more comfortable to play on the wings than Vela. Vela doesn’t enjoy playing wide
Hope we get him!
is it me just getting a bit excited or does anyone else think ramsey can be our gerrard or lampard?..seriously can see him in that bracket i think hes that good…people forget vela is 19..i think hes developing nicely..eduardo is a centre forward and a centre forward only..no1 else at arsenal and very few in the prem have the technique/ability to score that header..left wing is a waste for him,vela has the unpredictability for a winger-he suits that role more then edu