Most Arsenal fans seem to agree that the Gunners definitely need a top top top striker, a hard defensive midfielder and maybe a new goalkeeper to improve us for next season, but if Wenger finally actually manages to get rid of most of our deadwood this summer then we may need more than a few players to make up the numbers of squad players.
Arsene Wenger seems to have made his decision to include Jack Wilshere in the Arsenal starting line up today. Unless he is doing another of his old Jedi mind tricks, of course, and Mikel Arteta and his unmovable appear on the St. James' pitch this afternoon. Assuming the Spaniard has failed to recover from his calf problem, it will be Jack who plays alongside Ramsey.
The end of the season is unusually tense at Arsenal as we are sitting two points behind Tottenham in the race for the last Champions League spot and we have to play Wigan and Newcastle. The club gets a lot of criticism these days but the club always manages to finish in a safe position, however, this season things could be different.
Arsenal fans are used to seeing a long list of injuries for most of the Premiership season, but going into our final two games, we are down to just one person left on the treatment table, and no prizes for guessing who that is!
Last week, there was Kieran Gibbs, Lukasz Fabianski and Abou Diaby on the list, but Wenger revealed yesterday: "The news is quite good, we have everyone available.
Arsenal are going to be without the extremely gifted but equally unlucky French international Abou Diaby until the end of the year. Some Gooners will say that we have had to do without him for the last couple of years. Every time he comes back, it is not for long and he is not playing often enough to get back into the form we all know he could have.
With Jack Wilshere and Theo Walcott back from injury, Arsenal have almost a full complement of players to choose from for the hugely important five Premier league games left in this season. Only Abou Diaby is unavailable, so every single position in the starting line up is up for grabs. There is fierce competition for a place in the starting line up and this will really help the Gunners to finish the season strongly and grab a Champions League spot for next season.
There are few things more likely to cause an argument between a group of Arsenal fans than the subject of Aaron Ramsey. The Welsh international midfielder could build a roof with all the slating he has had over the past two seasons, but he has been voted as the Man of the Match on the official Arsenal website in the last two games and may finally be back to the player he was before his terrible leg break injury.
Is it time for Arsenal to sell Diaby? by Nitesh from JustArsenalFans.com
I know that this question has already been asked a lot of times. But from what I've seen, opinions are still divided on him, and a lot of fans haven't been able to decide. So I want to ask one last time: Do Arsenal fans feel it is time to move on Diaby?
The news that Jack Wilshere is taking longer than expected to recover from his ankle injury will have Arsenal fans feeling an icy sensation of dread, as the last time we heard that sort of thing, it was 17 months on the sidelines for the Gunners star.
According to Metro, medical staff at Arsenal are concerned that the 21-year old midfielder is not responding to treatment as they would expect.
Arsene Wenger's assistant at Arsenal, Steve Bould, has given Arsenal fans some much needed good news on the injury situation at the club. Following the devastating blow to the French midfielder Abou Diaby last week, it is a welcome change to hear of some injured players returning sooner than first thought.
Should Arsenal be looking to cut Diaby loose? by AH
We all know the latest news surrounding Abou Diaby and the fact he is ruled out for another 8-9 months following surgery after sustaining another injury.
Now we all know that Diaby himself doesn't have a specific fitness issue in itself and the reason why he is out so much is simply because he is blighted by injuries.
Arsene Wenger is hoping that Arsenal can pick up where they left off before the international break. The Gunners have lost Abou Diaby and Theo Walcott to injury since then, though, and Jack Wilshere is still not available. Arsenal should still be more than capable of a home win against the Premier League strugglers Reading, who have won just once on their travels all season and have lost all of their 11 games against the Gunners.
Arsenal vs Reading preview, match line up and score prediction by KJ
It's been a long two weeks since the Arsenal last played and it was probably the worst time to get the international break. Arsenal were back to winning ways with back to back wins against Bayern Munich and Swansea.
It's during the International break that I feel sorry for those fans who choose to blog about Arsenal every day. Quite what there was to talk about is beyond me, so hats off to them for drumming up content from the abyss. With relatively little news for the past week, except rumours of a Giroud goal for France (I know!
It seems as if Abou Diaby's career at Arsenal is never going to fulfill it's early promise, after the French midfielder has picked up another injury that will keep him on the sidelines for an extended period of time.
The official Arsenal website has revealed that Diaby has injured his left knee while training yesterday, and the medical tests have shown that he tore an anterior cruciate ligament.
When Arsenal host Premier League strugglers Reading at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday, it appears that Arsene Wenger will have more selection problems than we thought. The Gunners have five players unlikely to be available for the game, which might actually make the manager's job easier for him.
Luca Toni has told Stevan Jovetic to join a real ‘top club' rather than Arsenal. Well, that hurt, Luca.
The first half of Arsene Wenger's reign at Arsenal raised our expectations to such an extent that the past eight years can be described as somewhat of a failure.
Following defeat in the North London Derby, it was clear that a change in tactics and personnel was required if this Arsenal team were going to stand any chance of achieving a top 4 finish. Gone are the complacent ‘keeper and overzealous centre half. In their place is a new-look, authoritative Lukasz Fabianski and a resurgent Laurent Koscielny.
About five months after joining Arsenal in 2006, Abou Diaby suffered a nasty fracture to his ankle that kept him out of the Champions League final against Barcelona. Ever since then he seems to have spent more time in the treatment room than on the pitch, and his international career has suffered the same fate, with just 16 caps in six years.
Amazingly, having just turned 24-years old, Theo Walcott is one of the Arsenal old guard. He joined the club in January 2006, only one week after Abou Diaby and over a year before Bacary Sagna. Walcott has played more games than either of the French internationals, though, and so could be seen as the longest serving Gunner in the current team.
We do not know if Arsenal tried to sign Etienne Capoue from Toulouse in January, but he could have been the player Arsene Wenger was referring to when he said that a club had rejected a late transfer window offer for one of the Arsenal targets. Toulouse had sold Sissoko to Newcastle, and would have been left very light in midfield if they had also sold Capoue.
Every Arsenal fan will have slumped inwardly when they heard that Jack Wilshere is in the treatment room for the next few weeks. He is the fans favourite and the inspirational force of the team, and will be sorely missed tomorrow in Munich, but this injury could actually benefit Arsenal in the long term.
Arsene Wenger has given an update on the availability of the Arsenal players for the crunch second leg tie against Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena tomorrow. There is good news and bad. As expected, Bacary Sagna has not recovered in time from hi9s knee problem, so young Carl Jenkinson will start in his firth European game of the season.
Is Wilshere not providing Arsenal the correct defensive cover? by KJ
Jack Wilshere is something else. When we first saw him during the 2010 – 2011 season, there was definitely an air of excitement amongst fans and it was reinforced by world class performances against the likes of Barcelona which cemented the belief that he'd be a star for years to come.
With a favourable score line of 5-2 to Arsenal in the last two games against Tottenham, the Gunners should have an advantage over their North London rivals, especially when you consider that they always end up beneath us in the Premier League table, at least since Arsene Wenger took charge of Arsenal over 16 years ago.
Arsenal could be set for a summer transfer tussle with Manchester United over the French international midfielder Yohan Cabaye. Both clubs have been keeping a close eye on the 27-year old who has been at the centre of his current club Newcastle's return to form.
Newcastle signed Cabaye from the French Ligue 1 side Lille for less than £5 million and he has been brilliant for the Magpies since arriving.
I will apologise in advance for the depressing disposition being potrayed in this article, however i do not feel i am exaggerating or being down beat for the sake of it. I love Arsenal but I feel to find solution you have to take an objective look at the problems of which there are many.
Arsene Wenger will be more concerned with the performance of the Arsenal players today than their opponents. He has, however, made special mention of the Rovers and Scotland striker Jordan Rhodes. The 23-year old has got 20 goals from 30 games since signing from Huddersfield, and Wenger has warned his team that he is one of those players who just has the knck of scoring, so they must not allow him any freedom in the box.
Arsenal vs Blackburn preview, line up and score line prediction by KJ
Just days before our most high profile game of the season so far (Bayern Munich at the Emirates) we must deal with Blackburn Rovers in the last 16 of the FA cup.
Generally, we can expect Arsenal to be the favourites for this match and shouldn't really come out with anything less than a comfortable win at home.
Arsenal welcome Blackburn to the Emirates this weekend in the next round of the FA Cup following our 3-2 win over Brighton and Hove Albion a few weeks back. Despite falling down the ranks in recent years and making the drop to the Championship last summer, Blackburn are still worthy opponents and will be no push overs.
A CL tie against Bayern is by far the biggest game on Arsenal's hands so far this season at the Emirates, until perhaps, we get past them and meet other top teams.
Wenger needs to get his work well cut-out. There are a number of key factors that need keen and thorough attention.
With a few injuries to worry about, but a week before the next Arsenal match, Arsene Wenger could pick his strongest side possible to get a result from a tough visit to Sunderland. Lee Cattermole returns to an already physical side so the Gunners can expect a midfield battle. That may be why Ramsy will partner Arteta and Diaby will start on the bench.
One of the Arsenal midfielders, Jack Wilshere, is getting all the media attention this week because of the glamour tie between England and Brazil at Wembley tonight, and the young man deserves all the plaudits that he gets. The whole Arsenal midfield, however, are really starting to show their class.
Arsenal definitely missed the talent and experience of Mikel Arteta while he was on the sidelines for a month, but it could have been worse if we didn't have players like Diaby, Coquelin and Ramsey in the squad. The Gunners were unlucky with injuries to Diaby and Coquelin as well, but have come through a tough month still in the FA cup and still in touch with the top four, and Arteta believes that the ability to rotate players will be very important for the rest of the season.
There were a lot of names being linked with a transfer to Arsenal last month, too many to list here, and quite a high proportion of them were defensive midfielders. The Spanish international left back Nacho Monreal was the only new addition for the Gunners, though, which surprised many people who thought that a strong midfield warrior was top of the list for Arsene Wenger.
Surely Arsene Wenger will sign a defensive midfielder for Arsenal this summer, surely. I know that Mikel Arteta and Aaron Ramsey have been doing a great job recently and that there is the versatile Francis Coquelin breaking through from the reserve ranks, but the need for a proper, no-nonsense midfield general has been stark at times this season.
It has been reported in France that Arsenal have already made contact with the Ligue 1 side Olympique Lyonnais, or Lyon as we know them. The subject of this contact is their 24-year old captain and defensive midfielder Maxime Gonalons. For any Gooners who have access to Setanta Ireland, you will be able to see him in action today from 1 p.
As Arsenal fans we are used to seeing a long list of injuries every week that hampers Wenger's chances of ever playing his very best XI, but lately there seem to be very few injuries reported by the club on the official website any more...
This weeks list is quite amazing to behold, obviously the first name on the list is Abou Diaby, who is set to be out until the whole of Europe escapes from the recession (i.
Arsenal must bounce back after the week from hell. Aston Villa will be fighting for their lives, but willl have to do so without their centre back Ron Vlaar. Olivier Giroud is back in the team to lead the line, and Abou Diaby comes back into midfield at the expense of Aaron Ramsey. Injury has forced Bacary Sagna out, so Jenkinson will start, with Monreal on the other side.
By 1970's Gooner I think Diaby is ready to play in the middle of the defence at Sunderland on Saturday. He is fit, tall enough to compete with the aerial balls O'Neil's side will throw at Arsenal's defence aiming for Fletcher and/or Graham and most important of all he will be a far better proposition than Squillaci or the youngster Miquel.
