Arsène Wenger admits he does not have the answer. After 18 years at Arsenal he has scrutinised every detail and sought to move with the changing times but there are still moments when he can feel stumped.
The manager addressed the issue yet again in the buildup to Wednesday night’s Champions League match with Galatasaray at the Emirates Stadium and it is fair to say it is one that touches a nerve at the club. It is not the quest to triumph in Europe’s elite competition; to win the one major trophy to elude Wenger – rather to offer a satisfactory explanation for how the squad always seem to be carrying so many injuries.
Wenger will be without nine first-team players against the 19-times Turkish champions while a 10th, Jack Wilshere, is not expected to be risked from the start in light of the ankle knock he took in the 1-1 draw with Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday. Wilshere is in the squad.
Wenger confirmed Aaron Ramsey would be out for about four weeks with a hamstring pull and Mikel Arteta for three weeks because of a calf strain. The midfielders picked up the problems in the derby and they have joined Olivier Giroud, Theo Walcott, Mathieu Debuchy, Nacho Monreal, Yaya Sanogo and Serge Gnabry on the injury list.
Wenger also suggested Abou Diaby, who played for 67 minutes in the Capital One Cup defeat by Southampton last Tuesday, had suffered a setback. “I’ve left Diaby out because he’s not completely there yet,” he said.
Diaby’s fitness problems, sadly, have long since stopped making the headlines but Ramsey’s latest injury is a different story. Wenger was beside himself with frustration after the game against Tottenham as to how Ramsey could have felt the hamstring pop, having rested him against Southampton and given him a “light” week of training. And the sense of bafflement does not appear to have eased.
“We are getting things together, getting a report on all the different opinions – what happened to him, because it’s a real concern,” Wenger said.
The problem, coupled with that for Arteta, has turned the spotlight back on Arsenal’s injuries and, specifically, those that relate to muscle pulls or tears. The club have suffered from impact injuries – in other words, those that have been caused by challenges – but they have also endured a larger-than-average number of muscular issues.
Wenger considered the situation to be serious enough to warrant an overhaul of practices in the summer. How great were the changes? Wenger got a laugh when he said there was not a short answer to the question. Shad Forsythe, the fitness coach who worked with Germany at the World Cup finals, has been hired and there have been plenty of minor adjustments, such as looking at a player’s workload leading up to matches. It has also been noticeable that the substitutes have been sent out to warm up much more during games.
Wenger was asked whether the pitch at the Emirates might even be the problem. “Could be, you don’t rule anything out,” he replied, before resorting to his lighter touch. “Look, even if we look at it [the pitch], you have to play on it until the end of the season. There is no choice.”
The manager has been questioned repeatedly over his training techniques, in terms of whether the sessions are sufficiently intense to prepare the players for the explosiveness of the Premier League. The overriding impression was of a manager with an itch he cannot quite reach. “We made a lot of changes, yes,” Wenger said. “We have made changes in the way we prepare, in the way we work on prevention for injuries. When you work on the prevention for injuries, it’s a question mark: ‘Why do you get the injuries?’ We know a lot more than 18 years ago when I arrived but still not enough to predict 100% scientifically what happens to everybody.”
Wednesday marks the 18th anniversary of Wenger’s appointment and there is always the temptation to reminisce on reaching a landmark. Galatasaray were the team who denied Wenger the Uefa Cup in 2000, shading a tumultuous final after a penalty shootout.
“I remember the number of chances we missed, their Brazilian goalkeeper [Claudio Taffarel], who made unbelievable saves and the referee, who put the penalties on the Turkish side for security reasons,” Wenger said. “That was an amazing decision.”
Wenger is not generally given to looking back and his focus is on the 11 fit players who, after the 2-0 defeat at Borussia Dortmund in the opening Group D tie, sorely need to find a cutting edge against Galatasaray and a win at home.
“It’s early but we are maybe under more pressure to win than if we had won the first game,” Wenger said. “The group stage is a minimum of 10 points, so the home games are vital. You need one good away result and then to win all your home games.”
