Arsenal News: Cesc Fabregas and Nicklas Bendtner expected back soon
In times when the news is either about an Arsenal player hobbling off the field or the team losing ground on other title contenders, the clouds have finally sifted away to leave the sun shining on the Emirates Stadium.
Arsenal talisman Cesc Fabregas and Danish striker Nicklas Bendtner are set to make a return to first team action after the international break. The Arsenal captain was out with a hamstring problem after one of the most bizarre
goals this season – a ‘freakish’ goal, as described by the ESPN commentary panel. It started out as a mere block that ballooned right over the Sunderland keeper and into the empty net. The Spaniard was taken off shortly afterwards and hasn’t featured since.
The positive news for the Gunners would be the fact that the midfield player was not included in the Spanish squad that features in a total of two Euro qualifiers this week - Lithuania being their first opponents, followed by the match against Scotland. The
added rest should ensure that the midfield maestro is fully fit and effectively available for the Gunner’s next Premier League trip to Birmingham.
Nicklas Bendtner on the other hand, is yet to be seen in Arsenal colours this season. The Denmark international suffered a groin injury during the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. The striker was neither able to complete his stay
at the international tournament, nor was he present for Arsenal’s pre-season campaign.
“Now I am ready [to train]," revealed Bendtner.
"Some of the boys have time off because of their internationals, but otherwise I train together with the other first-team players at Arsenal and I have enjoyed myself so much.”
"I have no pain in the groin and have trained so hard physically that maybe I am in my best shape ever. I need only a couple of reserve team matches to be quite sharp in football terms. It is my hope that I can be with the first
team in 14 days."
The re-emergence of both players would potentially do Arsenal a world of good. Already trailing by 7 points behind Premier League champions and current table toppers, Chelsea, Arsenal are in desperate need of getting some fruitful
score lines in their favour. The team has been relying too much on Chamakh to lead the attack. Nicklas Bendtner would provide more depth in the striking department. Young Jack Wilshere was entrusted to orchestrate the Arsenal attack. Without much argument,
the 18 year old has fulfilled those opportunities rather well. However, after being selected for the England first team squad, the already fatigued midfield player is expected to be even more over worked – a fresh Fabregas after the international break would
give Wilshere some much needed rest.
On the flip side, Bendtner and Chamakh are both aerially very strong thanks to their stature and prefer playing up front. After both strikers are available to Wenger, there might just be a trade-off. They’re both similar players
and might not be able to function correctly playing alongside each other. Who would be the central striker? Would Wenger still continue with the 4-3-3 formation system? Could both strikers coexist or are we in for a repeat of the fiery disagreement up front
between the Dane and Emanuel Adebayor a couple of seasons back?
Secondly, while the return of Fabregas might give Wilshere some much needed rest, it would also limit his play time in the starting eleven. Since both players prefer the same position, there might be a problem for Wenger to feature
both at the same time. The potential lack of involvement might also dent the youngster’s prospects for a permanent place in England’s national team.
Elsewhere, Theo Walcott is expected to be back for the game against Manchester City. Robin van Persie and Aaron Ramsey are due to be in contention somewhere in November. For Arsenal’s sake, having its main squad back in contention
would greatly drive their push for the title, they need silverware badly.
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