Striker crisis as Henry adds to Gunners' woes
Wenger is already without Jose Antonio Reyes, Dennis Bergkamp and Robin van Persie all through suspension, with the club’s indiscipline having returned to haunt them.
The Gunners’ boss also lost Robert Pires with an ankle injury in last weekend’s draw at Southampton, while Jeremie Aliadiere is not yet considered ready to return to a starting role after a lengthy absence with a knee problem.
Wenger revealed Pires would be sidelined for another two to three weeks with his ankle injury - ruling him out of the Champions League rematch against Bayern Munich on March 9.
Pires could even be doubtful for the trip to Blackburn on March 19, although scans have at least shown the Frenchman has not broken any bones.
“It doesn’t look like anything is fractured, but it is a good ankle sprain. It does not look like he will be ready for two to three weeks,” confirmed Wenger, who hopes Edu will return in time to face Bayern at Highbury.
That leaves 18-year-old Quincy Owusu-Abeyie or 17-year-old Arturo Lupoli to lead the attack at Bramall Lane, with Freddie Ljungberg forced into an emergency support-striker role. “Thierry is out with an Achilles problem. Therefore I have to think about whom I play up front,” Wenger said.
“Ljungberg is an option but anyway we need a second striker. I have to decide whether it will be Aliadiere, Quincy or Lupoli who starts with him up front. I don’t know which yet, but those three will be involved.”
France U21 international Aliadiere is the most experienced of the trio, but has only played eight minutes of first-team football since injuring his knee ligaments in the Community Shield last August.
“Aliadiere has only had 60 minutes of reserve team football after six months out. He can come on for 20 minutes but I don’t think I will make him start.”
Quincy and Lupoli have shown their promise in the Carling Cup campaign this season, with both having been on target in the 3-1 home win against a near full-strength Everton side last November.
However, Arsenal simply cannot afford to suffer another setback in the FA Cup after seeing their title ambitions effectively slip away in the past few weeks. They also face a battle to resurrect their Champions League hopes after losing 3-1 away to Bayern Munich in their last-16 first-leg tie.
Ljungberg, who struggled to make an impact in a forward role in Munich last week, said: “I’ve done it at the end of games when it’s a bit more open. Then I enjoy it, when I can play between the midfield and strikers.
“But playing up front is probably not my thing. If I get long balls and stuff, like I did at Bayern, then I can’t do that much as I’m not that big.”
The goalscoring onus will nevertheless fall squarely on his shoulders tomorrow night with Arsenal’s season hanging precariously in the balance.
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