Stoke v The Arse: Preview
Match previews have effectively become injury updates:
Diaby is out for two games, Gibbs is out for the season, Campbell may be out but Jack Wilshere and Theo Walcott could start for the league leaders.
The FA Cup has become a dilemma for Wenger. On the one hand, it has brought him the greatest success during his time at the club but on the other, it is a drain on resources and plays havoc with the fixture list if we reach the latter stages.
In the midst of such a busy schedule it will be entirely understandable if Wenger selects a Carling Cup team for the trip to the Britannia Stadium. Winning the FA Cup would be fantastic but with such an injury prone squad, the manager has to prioritise the league, particularly while we sit at its summit.
Stoke will fancy their chances and, if key players like Gallas, Vermaelen and Fabregas are rested, they should be favourites ahead of the match. With Man Utd and Liverpool already eliminated Wenger could be accused of throwing away our best chance of silverware in five years but he has to protect his players. It is an unenviable situation.
We have sold out our allocation and it will be an electric atmosphere tomorrow, you never know, we may even win and prove that we do have a squad capable of fighting on all fronts.
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