On Carling Cup :
It matters not that we lost, quite undeservingly I must add. The kids played breathtaking football, it was a great game and it filled me with pride That is what I will always remember the first Cup final at the new Wembley.

Come On Gunners!

PLenty of chances to win the game and arsenal didnt take it, i think ive seen this movie too many times this year. I dont lay it on injuries, every team has em, i mean listen to the moaning in stamford bridge when they lose 1 central midfielder, can you imagine how annoying hed be if he had lost 10 of his 1st teamers? so please.

the real blame to me is with wenge. he played 2 of his 4 defenders out of position both on the right side. he easily could have either kept senderos inside or at the least protect him with moving gallas to the right. wenge has many strengths but he does tactically come up short.

tough week to be a gooner

So let’s start with lastnight’s team. What could they have done different? Traore had to be called back from abroad to play, and Eboue’s suspension was appeal pretty much just to allow him to play yesterday. Their back line was decimated, they had no other options. What about the front line? Aliadiere and Baptista played, not because of their role in youth side, but because, they were the only strikers left!

The only two players who could have possibly played yesterday that are first teamers are the two you mentioned – Fabregas and Lehmann. Wenger has been clear that Lehmann’s rest schedule is such that he won’t be playing in the cups. Either way, he’s beside the point – no keeper was stopping the Rovers’ goal. Fabregas? Sure, he would’ve helped. But first we need to look at why he wasn’t playing! Fabregas has been anchoring this injury riddled lineup all season, and has been showing serious signs of fatigue lately. He absolutely needed a rest. When do you rest a player when you have FA Cup, Premiership (where we are fighting for a champions league spot!) and Champions League games all in one week? Wenger had to pick a spot to rest him, and any choice would’ve had negative consequences.

Now to turn to the Carling Cup. Wenger made the right decision. Casted in the way you put it, pragmatically, you might be right. The gain of a Cup win might be better than the gain of one day of experience. But, Wenger’s decision was not purely pragmatic. It was ethical. He told these kids that this was their tournament – and how did they respond? By beating Liverpool and Tottenham. Wenger gave them the opportunity to play in the Cup, and they earned a chance in the title. I think it was the ethically correct decision to let them play the match that they earned.