Arsenal FC are facing a severe injury crisis, with as many as eight members of their first-team squad being sidelined due to injury, and manager Arsene Wenger will be looking to his young starlets Alex Iwobi and Joel Campbell to fill the the void.
The Gunners already had a long line of injured players, with the likes of Aaron Ramsey, Mikel Arteta, Jack Wilchere, and Danny Welbeck being sidelined due to injury. To add to this list, both Theo Walcott and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain picked up injuries in their midweek Capital One Cup fixture against Sheffield Wednesday FC.
With Welbeck, Walcott, and Chamberlain out of action, Wenger’s options on the right wing have become limited indeed. Thus he has retained Iwobi and Campbell, who were called up for their midweek match against the Championship side.
.
Now however, it seems that Wenger will have to make do with the two youngsters for the Premier League and Champions League matches as well.
“Campbell and Alex Iwobi [are the options on the right flank],” Wenger was quoted saying on Arsenal’s official website. “Santi can play there as well but he has become very important centrally. The problem sometimes is that you can destroy two departments if you move one player out. We control the ball better with Santi in the middle.”
Iwobi and Campbell to give Wenger options up front as well
Wenger’s decision to stick with Iwobi and Campbell could turn out to be a shrewd one, as both the players can not only play on the wings, but also up front. With Walcott’s injury, the Arsenal FC manager has lost a forward as well as an option on the right wing.
The Frenchman has been alternating Walcott and Giroud up front, with both players scoring six goals this season. Thus the selection of Iwobi and Campbell essentially covers up for the deficiencies in both forward and wing positions.