Emirates Stadium supremo Arsene Wenger has moved quickly to refute any possibility of an underlying meaning in ‘keeper Wojcech Szczesny’s absense from the side in their fixture against West Bromwich Albion this weekend.
The Polish number one was not even named among Arsenal‘s match day squad as the Gunners ran out 2-1 winners at The Hawthorns. Instead, Vito Mannone found himself on the bench.
Despite this, ESPN reports, Wenger puts the absense down to the player requiring a ‘mental break’. The French manager admitted that he wished to protect his player, after questions have grown ever louder regarding the player’s capabilities.
To add fuel to the fire the North London side have been linked with a raft of top class goalkeepers, who have been rumoured to be potential replacements for the 22 year old stopper.
Wenger said of the situation:
“I rotate the goalkeepers on the bench because when they are two games on the bench then they work for two games, because when they sit always on the bench they lose fitness.”
It would not be a surprise to see Wenger purchase a new ‘keeper in the summer, even if it were just a precautionary move to keep Szczesny on his toes, as his form has undoutedly dipped this term.
Jacob Cotterill
Mannone between the sticks? Come on man get the facts right at least