Arsenal’s miserable defeat to Braga was compounded by the hamstring injury to Cesc Fabregas which is set to sideline the mercurial playmaker and Fantasy favourite for yet another spell. The 2-0 defeat left Wenger’s side staring at the possibility of Champions League elimination, while over Stamford Bridge, Carlo Ancelotti’s side were far from convincing but thankfully disposed of Zilina without fuss or casualties….
Wenger’s much-changed lineup in Portugal saw Fabregas start in a midfield that also included Theo Walcott, Tomas Rosicky and Jack Wilshere – all players that have been rotated in the Gunners starting XI of late. Nicklas Bendtner earned an opportunity as the lone striker, while at the back Wenger brought in Johan Djourou to partner Sebastien Squillaci. Emmanuel Eboue and Kieran Gibbs took up the full-back positions.
In terms of the impact on Arsenal’s Fantasy prospects, while the defeat will do little for their confidence, it was of course the injury to Fabregas which will resonate through to us Fantasy Managers. Wenger’s decision to start his skipper, a doubt with his hamstring injury before the game, backfired massively; the Arsenal boss at least acknowledged as much in his post-match comments…
“As for Cesc, it’s a hamstring injury on the other leg [to that which has troubled him this season]. It’s hard to say how long he’ll be out for. He’ll definitely miss the weekend – we will have to assess [him] tomorrow. It could be two to three weeks…It is very disappointing because I had a hesitation to play him before the match started. I took the gamble and it back-fired on us.”
It seems likely that Wenger will likely be cautious with his skipper from this point on. He will surely want to avoid another recurrence and that could well prolong the absence. We’ve seen in the past how Arsenal’s injuries can stretch out in their duration, regardless of the optimistic updates presented by Wenger so perhaps around a three week absence seems the most likely outcome.
The responsibility on Samir Nasri, his second-half replacement last night, will now increase and he provides the obvious alternative for Fabregas owners looking to keep faith with the Gunners midfield. The likes of Wilshere, Walcott and Bendtner will come out of the game with little credit, while Robin Van Persie and Andrei Arshavin will surely slot into the weekend lineup at Villa Park having been rested in last night’s game. Like Nasri, they will now be expected to step up to help Arsenal regain momentum in the absence of Fabregas.
As a final sidenote, the medial ligament strain suffered by Emmanuel Eboue in last night’s game will likely keep him out of contention for a long spell – that will cement Bacary Sagna’s start and make him less of a rotation risk around Champions League matches.
Chelsea’s 2-1 victory over Zilina was far from plain sailing, but in contrast to Arsenal, they will have been pleased with their night’s work given their run of league form.
Carlo Ancelotti started with an inexperienced side, handing opportunities to the likes of Ross Turnbull in goal and Jefrrey Bruma, Patrick van Aanholt in the back four, Josh McEachran in midfield and Gael Kakuta up front. There was a smattering of experience around them however as Florent Malouda and Didier Drogba both started. Daniel Sturridge also earned a start and he looked the most likely before he eventually fired Chelsea’s equaliser early in the second-half. Ultimately it was Drogba and Malouda were to combine to win the game. Starting in a midfield role once again, Malouda’s winner was his first goal in seven games in all competitions.
Saturday’s trip to Newcastle is likely to see Mikel come back into the midfield, while Alex will surely return to partner Bran Ivanovic at the back with Ashley Cole returning at left-back. The likes of Salomon Kalou and Nicolas Anelka, both used as subs last night, would also look well placed for starts. That would seem likely to see Malouda take up a midfield role once again with Yuri Zhirkov presumably still an injury doubt. Josh McEachran, impressive in last night’s game, drawing praise from Ancelotti, he is an option here but is likely to figure from the bench again.
