Abou Diaby
In-form midfield trio can cover for Captain
By Declan Taylor
Arsène Wenger is confident his other in-form midfielders can cover for the injured Cesc Fabregas.
The Arsenal captain has been ruled out of Saturday’s Premier League trip to Old Trafford with a hamstring strain with the scan on his injured muscle described as “not conclusive”.
But Fabregas is not the only midfielder to have excelled in the Gunners’ new-look 4-3-3 formation. Denilson and Abou Diaby punctuated the side’s impressive opening with some stunning strikes, while Alex Song has received glowing reports playing further back as the midfield anchor.
Wenger admits that losing his skipper’s craft and guile is a blow but he believes that the trio’s brawn can “compensate” for the loss.
“I believe ideally Cesc gives us stability,” the manager said at Friday’s press conference.
“Cesc masters well the timing of the game - when you need to slow down and speed up.
“He always gives you one or two goals to score in every single game. So we have to compensate for that.
“But, the form of Diaby, Denilson and Song, who are physical, can compensate.”
[Friday, August 28, 2009]
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