Michu climbs off the bench to net yet again for Swansea, while Kieran Gibbs and Lukas Podolski are amongst the goals for the Gunners ahead of double Gameweek 23. Daniel Sturridge is handed a role through the middle and opens his Liverpool account at Mansfield as Luis Suarez adds to his season’s tally with a somewhat dubious strike to seal their progress:
Swansea 2 Arsenal 2
Theo Walcott was shifted back to the flank for the Gunners’ trip to the Liberty, with Olivier Giroud leading the line once again – a concern for Walcott’s owners ahead of double Gameweek 23. Kieran Gibbs continued to impress in attacking terms ahead of the double; the left-back, who has produced three assists in the last four league games, grabbed the visitors’ second, with Giroud supplying the assist, while Lukas Podolski emerged from the bench to notch.
The result means that, if they win their January 16 replay with the Swans, Arsene Wenger’s side will play seven games in 21 days – hardly reassuring for Fantasy managers eyeing up Arsenal’s assets. When asked post-match if his side could cope with the upcoming fixture congestion, Wenger went on to say:
“Today we had four players at home, and I didn’t bring on Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Francis Coquelin or Tomas Rosicky. Abou Diaby is coming back and if we find one or two on the transfer market, then why not.”
The Arsenal boss also took time to comment on Giroud and Gibbs. Wenger was full of praise for the left-back, who continues to look an assured starter in the XI:
“Kieran Gibbs had an outstanding game. He gets better and better. When you see this kind of game, it’s very positive.”
Giroud, apparently, had an issue with his knee, though his manager alleviated any fears by confirming:
“He has a big scar but I think he should be okay now.”
Michael Laudrup made four changes from the side that drew against Villa last midweek, with Danny Graham leading the line again, as Michu dropped to the bench. Graham vindicated his manager’s decision by notching his third goal in as many games and also supplied the assist for Michu’s goal, after the Spaniard notched within two minutes of climbing off the bench.
Similar to Arsenal, Swansea face a packed schedule over the next few weeks. With Capital One Cup semi-final duties to consider, Laudrup’s side could face eight games in the next 24 days if they win their replay – while rest and rotation will undoubtedly play a part, the Dane revealed Michu’s exclusion from yesterday’s starting line-up was more of a fitness issue – something of a worry, given the upcoming run of fixtures:
“He wasn’t 100 per cent. He picked up an ankle injury in the game against Reading and he also had a slight back problem.”
Mansfield 1 Liverpool 2
Brendan Rodgers made numerous alterations to his first XI for yesterday’s clash. Daniel Sturridge was handed his debut through the centre, with Stewart Downing once again starting for the Reds – Steven Gerrard was omitted from the squad altogether, while Raheem Sterling and Luis Suarez were named on the bench. Sturridge made an instant impact by notching the opener, courtesy of a Jonjo Shelvey assist, before making way for Suarez on 55 minutes. The Uruguayan grabbed a controversial second to secure his side’s progress and while Rodgers spent time downplaying Suarez’s handball in the lead up to the goal, his post-match thoughts were also focussed on Sturridge’s contribution:
“I thought he was excellent. He’s nowhere near fit yet, he’s come in off the back of an injury and hasn’t done a lot of training. I think you saw in that cameo today of 55 minutes his pace, his power and he scored a good goal. He probably could have had three goals. It was a good introduction for him, a tough one because Mansfield were very committed. He got his goal and that will give him confidence – he’ll look to keep scoring.”
It’s worth noting that the arrival of Sturridge has done little to quell Fantasy interest interest in Luis Suarez. Sturridge has seen roughly 10% of the transfers in that have gone the way of Suarez with the Uruguayan enjoying over 100,000 transfers in so far in the Gameweek. Rodgers brought us this on his new strike partnership, post-match…
“They can play together, there’s no problem with that. Obviously we want to fit in good players and that’s the most important thing, to keep the squad strong and build up a competitive group. They are both wonderful players, they have both got different strengths but the idea was bringing in players that are multifunctional and can play in a couple of positions and that is what Luis has shown he can do and Daniel also. They are both tactically strong, flexible in their play.”
