Arsenal 2-2 vs. Wigan Athletic - Post Op: Arsene Wenger defends his selection policy
Arsenal FC manager Arsene Wenger has come out and defended his selection policy.
Arsenal played Wigan Athletic on Tuesday night at the DW Stadium and drew the match 2-2 after 90 minutes.
Wenger made 8 changes on the night, from the starting line-up that beat http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Theo-Walcott-c34873 were on the bench, whereas
Russian star http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Abou-Diaby-c3453 started for the Gunners.
The home side took the lead when http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Ben-Watson-c7458 struck from the penalty spot in the 17th minute. However, the north-Londoners responded by hitting 2 goals before the half-time interval. The 1st
Arsenal goal was struck by Arshavin in the 39th minute, when he magnificently timed his scissor-kick to beat the Wigan goalkeeper.
Danish international striker http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Nicklas-Bendtner-c27726 doubled Arsenal’s tally 5 minutes after the equalizer, to end the half in a 2-1 score-line.
However, the Gunners lost their lead in the 80th minute of the match after Sebastian Squillaci’s attempted header ended up in his own goal.
It was an unfortunate result for the Gunners that saw them drop a crucial 2 points in the title race.
Wenger explained his selection for the night and was of the opinion that the players needed a breather after the busy Christmas period.
He said, “I had to change the team - with all these matches we cannot play always with the same team - but I don't think that was a problem at all. We had a disadvantage that Manchester United has not got - Wigan played three days
ago and we played 48 hours ago, a big game in the evening.”
The French manager was satisfied with the point and admitted that the draw was a deserved result.
He said, “It is a point and we will see at the end of the season how important it is - last night Man U played 1-1 at Birmingham and we played 2-2 in this game. I don't think it's a shame - overall the draw was all right. Wigan
had chances as well.”
Arsenal are now 3rd in the League table, with 36 points after playing 19 matches. Manchester United will enter the New Year as the league leaders as they have 38 points from 18 games.
Wenger now has to prepare his team for the weekend clash against Birmingham City at St. Andrew’s.
Tags: