More back pain for Gunners as Gibbs doubtful

ARSENAL’S defensive crisis has deepened ahead of the FA Cup semi-final against Chelsea tomorrow after Kieran Gibbs emerged as his latest injury concern.

Right-back Bacary Sagna withdrew through illness on the eve of this week’s Champions League clash against Villarreal, while Gibbs picked up a groin problem late in the victory.

Gunners boss Arsene Wenger is already without Gael Clichy (back), William Gallas (knee) and Johan Djourou (knee) for Wembley.

“We still have Sagna as a doubt for the weekend,” said Wenger. “And after Villarreal we have Kieran Gibbs as doubt too. He has a little groin problem. Clichy, Almunia and Djourou are still out.”

Goalkeeper Manuel Almunia will also miss the semi-final with his ankle injury, meaning Lukasz Fabianski will deputise, but who plays at left-back instead of Clichy and Gibbs is less straightforward.

“There is the option to play Sagna in there if he has recovered,” Wenger said. “The other is to play (Mikael) Silvestre there and put (Alex) Song at the back.

“There are not many options but we’ll deal with the situation no matter what happens.

“I am happy to take 48 hours more so I can assess the (injury) situation. Also it means I can look back at how I rotated before and, as well, how we can keep the balance right considering the opponent.’’

Almunia and Djourou are a fortnight away from action, while Clichy needs two-and-a-half weeks of rest. It means they are all doubts for the first leg of the Champions League semi-final against Manchester United.

The good news for Wenger is Andrey Arshavin and Eduardo are both available for Wembley.

Meanwhile Gunners winger Theo Walcott insists his side have got their rivals running scared heading into the business end of the season.

After sweeping aside Villarreal to set up a Champions League semi-final against United, Walcott’s focus is now on the FA Cup.

The Gunners are unbeaten in 18 Barclays Premier League games and are confident playing against any team at the moment, according to 20-year-old Walcott.

“There is a lot of confidence in the dressing room, everyone is buzzing,” he said. “We feel every team are scared of us as soon as we step on the pitch. It’s great to play when things are going like that.

“We are playing brilliant football and scoring goals from all sorts of positions which helps the team.

“We are defending well and even though we have players out injured, others are coming in and doing just as good a job.

“It will be difficult against United but we play them regularly in the Premier League and do very well against them. They are probably the best team in the world but as long as we dig in, I’m sure we’ll be fine.”

After watching Chelsea ship seven goals in their last two games, Walcott and Arsenal’s other attacking players are relishing the opportunity to put Guus Hiddink’s defence under more pressure.

Walcott said: “We will be looking to utilise their weak spots.

“If we play like we did against Villarreal, then I’m sure we’ll get some goals.”

Emmanuel Adebayor, who was on the scoresheet with Walcott and Robin van Persie in Wednesday’s quarter-final win over Villarreal, echoed the sentiments of his team-mate.

“We know how strong Chelsea are, but we just have to put the ball on the ground and play our own football,” said the Togo striker. “If we play our style we can beat every team in the world.”