Carling Cup Preview: Will Bischoff be involved?
Add comment November 11th, 2008
After the rousing victory over Man U, Arsenals kids will get another chance to impress in the Carling Cup. After the 6-0 demolition of Sheffield United, this time we’re up against Premiership opposition in Steve Bruce’s Wigan.
In spite of the tougher task, Arsene says that “90%” of the side who played in the last round will be involved, and you have to say they fully deserve another chance. The team that faced Sheffield United was:
Fabianski
Hoyte
Djourou
Song
Gibbs
Wilshere
Ramsey
Randall
Merida
Vela
Bendtner
With Bendtner increasingly vital in the absence of Van Persie and Adebayor, I don’t imagine he’ll be risked tonight. Instead, I wonder if we might see Amaury Bischoff. Since returning from a long-term groin (or hip, I forget) problem, Bischoff has made three Reserve team appearances and scored one impressive goal. The Reserve side has been changed to a 4-4-1-1 system to accommodate Bischoff in the ‘Number 10’ role, and I wonder if he might be fit enough to be deployed behind Carlos Vela tomorrow.
The ever-informative Young Guns claims to have unearthed the full squad for tomorrow’s game, and that suggests that if Bischoff is not able to start we may see Jay Simpson or Rui Fonte in his place.
Ahead of the game, Arsene Wenger has been speaking about the talent of Fran Merida, whose emergence has been somewhat overshadowed by the presence of Brits like Wilshere and Ramsey:
“Merida is different to Cesc [Fà bregas], but he is very dangerous in the final third. If you analyse a game and look who gives the ball every time in the final third, you will see Fran. “That is the most difficult part of the game and that is where he is strong.”
There’ll be 60,000 in the stadium tonight, and plenty more watching on Sky. It’s a night for someone like Merida to make a name for themselves.
I’m confident at least one of them will. Come on you (young) Gunners!
