McLintock astonished at 'tired' Vieira's request for a rest

FORMER Arsenal captain Frank McLintock has expressed his disbelief that current skipper Patrick Vieira is planning to ask Arsene Wenger to give him a rest just five league games into the new season.

McLintock believes Vieira’s plea, insisting he needs a break to stop his form suffering as he ‘‘can hardly stand up at times’’, could be as much due to psychological as physical reasons following the speculation over his future last season.

Vieira looked to be showing signs of exhaustion at the World Cup but, despite France’s early exit, he is apparently still tired after taking part in the Gunners’ first six games of this season, including the Charity Shield, and two internationals. Despite the impassioned appeal, Arsenal manager Wenger said he had no plans to rest his captain and said he would be in the squad for Saturday's match at Charlton.

“Patrick played in Cyprus on Saturday night (for France), and after the game against Manchester City on Tuesday night he was very tired," Wenger told Arsenal.com. “I looked at the statistics for Tuesday's game and, physically, Patrick was outstanding. He pushed himself very hard and that explains why he was so tired, but I have no plans to rest him. I believe that he is a different physical shape now and he will be ready for Saturday's game.”

He does have an enforced ‘rest’ coming up on September 21 due to a one-match suspension following his red card against Chelsea, while he could face a further ban after being charged with swearing at referee Andy D’Urso.

However, the Frenchman admitted: ‘‘I’m not just tired, I’m cooked. I can hardly stand up at times. My back hurts, my legs hurt, I hurt everywhere. I am going to see the manager because he must give me some rest.

‘‘I don’t know when or how, but we have to do it quickly because the Champions League is coming and there will also soon be two matches Slovenia and Malta in Euro 2004 qualifiers with the French team.’’

Vieira played 54 times for Arsenal last season, in addition to 11 appearances for France, making an energy-sapping total of 65 games. It is his current form that he is most worried by though: ‘‘I know very well that I’m not good at the moment and that my performances are up and down.

‘‘My confidence is not affected by these average performances because I know myself very well, but I do feel a bit unnerved by my form.’’

McLintock reacted: ‘‘I’m astounded by it. I’ve watched him in recent games and he looks just as good as ever. He covers a vast amount of ground. He’s a great athlete and to think that he is tired after five games is quite astonishing. When I think back to when we played, we often played 55 to 65 games a season. The game has become a bit quicker but the pitches we played on were much different.’’ An added problem for Arsenal is that their French Under-21 international striker Jeremie Aliadiere has been diagnosed with a serious groin strain which could require surgery. ‘‘The pain was not that bad and above all I wanted to show my potential,’’ he told L’Equipe. ‘‘But if this is confirmed by further examinations, I’ll undergo special medical treatment and my absence could be between two to five months.’’

On a more positive note, however, winger Freddie Ljungberg has revealed he is targeting the club’s home game against Bolton on September 21 as his projected comeback date.

Ljungberg, who has been sidelined since the World Cup with a hip injury, came through a 67-minute run-out for a combined reserve and youth side in a friendly against Reading yesterday.

‘‘I hope to be in the squad soon, hopefully by the home match against Bolton, but we will have to see how things go,’’ he told the club’s website. ‘‘I have only done two sessions of training before playing today. I had a major operation on my hip and have been out for three months so it is important to be a bit cautious.”