Arsene Wenger has all but ruled out Cesc Fabregas for Saturday’s Emirates clash with Birmingham.
In his usual Thursday afternoon update Wenger stated that match fitness was a concern with his skipper stating…
“Cesc is very, very short and unlikely to be involved [on Saturday]. He has a little chance for Tuesday.”
The news will come as a major blow to Fantasy Managers who will have preparing their squads for the return of the Gunners playmaker ahead of Gameweek 7. Fabregas is currently riding high in our Captain poll with 24% of the vote.
Given that Fabregas will now likely make a Premier League return against City at Eastlands in Gameweek 9, it now looks as though we will be afforded a couple of weeks of breathing space to muster the funds required to bring in the inspirational Spaniard. That will be little consolation to those who have already made the move, or played their wildcards this week to manufacture the transfer.
Samir Nasri – in strong form and possibly deployed up in support of the lone striker, now looks a lot good prospect against Birmingham. Crucially Nasri started on the bench in Tuesday’s Euro Qualifier with Luxembourg, only appearing on 63 minutes.
In other news from the Emirates, Wenger confirmed that Nicklas Bendtner will make a return to the squad – a development that immediately puts Marouane Chamakh under threat as a Fantasy prospect. Bendtner is likely to start life on the bench against Birmingham but clearly will be a factor from this point on. Wenger had this to say on Bendtner’s return…
“Apart from the fact he went to the World Cup we have not seen the real Nicklas Bendtner for a long, long time. He is the closest he has been to his best for a while. He was really, really handicapped by groin problems but they have gone now.”
Theo Walcott could also figure; he is set to be assessed following Friday’s training session. Kieran Gibbs is available and could start with Gael Clichy rested with Tuesday’s Champions League tie in mind.
Thomas Vermaelen and Bacary Sagna remained sidelined and Wenger has cast doubt on their return against City…
“Sagna is ten days, Vermaelen is ten days”
Manuel Almunia will likely be in contention for the City game while Robin Van Persie remains “a bit longer” away from a return. We’re all too familiar with that particular prognosis when it comes to Van Persie.
