As is the way at this time of the year, games are coming thick and fast! Top of the league, Arsenal are looking to build on our recent good form against Wolves.
Gary O’Neil is a fantastic young manager and surely destined for bigger things. His team come into the game as a wounded animal having had yet more VAR decisions go against them last weekend.
On 15 points from 13 games, they could quite easily been on 21 had decisions gone there way. That would have them sitting in 9th, ahead of West Ham and just 1 point behind Brighton and 2 behind Newcastle.
It feels this season that the quality in the Premier League runs deep.
Arsenal coach need to rotate squad
The likes of Aston Villa, Newcastle, Brighton, Brentford, West Ham and Wolves have recruited well and clsoed the gap between them and the “Big 6”. The fact these teams are regularly buying players from Champions League clubs such as Atletico Madrid highlights just how far financially the Premier League is these days.
You always worry about playing on a Wednesday and then Saturday. Luckily for us, both games are at home. Things would have been tricker had we just travelled to Lens and then had to go up north to Wolverhampton.
Games like today are where you need to lean on your squad a little bit. We have a squad of 25 and it is important that we use them. With Luton Town coming up on Tuesday and Aston Villa next Saturday, it will be important to rotate.
Oleksandr Zinchenko and Takehiro Tomiyasu were both taken off at half time on Wednesday as Mikel Arteta swapped out his full backs. Tomiyasu has been brilliant at right back and left back this season.
I think over the next 3 games, Zinchenko,
Tomi and Ben White will all play two-games each as Arteta gives each of them a break.
One area where Arteta will not be rotating is our defensive triangle of Gabriel, William Saliba and Declan Rice. They are up there with any defensive trio in world football.
