Wenger to blood youth against Boro

Arsene Wenger will again put the accent on youth in the first leg of tonight’s Carling Cup semi-final clash with Middlesbrough, as the Gunners boss looks for evidence his budding stars of the future can save him money in the transfer market.

Wenger has relied heavily on fringe players to help Arsenal reach the last four of the competition, but his line-up tonight could be the least experienced of them all – particularly in attack where Dennis Bergkamp and Sylvain Wiltord are injured and Thierry Henry is being rested.

It will be a chance for the likes of strikers Michal Papadopulos, Quincy Owusu-Abeyie or Ryan Smith to impress Wenger, while midfielder David Bentley can also operate further forwards.

Wenger said: “We will play with a good team that has a chance to win, but I will play with the youngsters. There will be no Wiltord or Bergkamp, and Henry will be rested.

“Is it the chance for the youngsters to show they can save you money? That would be nice. We know about Gael Clichy already and he has played in the Premier League.

“But there might be one or two really young players, one or two surprises, who play.

“Of Michal Papadopulos, Quincy Owusu-Abeyie and Ryan Smith, one of those three will play. Then we have David Bentley as well.

“It is a good opportunity for me to see the young players in a game where there is something at stake and where we have a chance to go to Cardiff. We really want to go for it.

“People ask me if my attitude towards the competition alters now we are in the semi-final and the answer is ‘not really’.

“I have no real choice because it is too risky to play everyone because we have got the Champions League and the Premier League to go for and the season is a long affair.”

Wenger expects Middlesbrough to be smarting after a 4-1 league defeat by Arsenal 10 days ago, and the clubs will now meet three times in nine days, with an FA Cup fourth-round date sandwiched in between the two legs of the Carling Cup.

And the Frenchman’s thinking in terms of the line-up he sends to the Riverside Stadium next Wednesday will depend on the outcome of tonight’s first leg.

Wenger said: “You can be sure that Middlesbrough will want to play much better than they did against us in the Premier League.

“For Middlesbrough, it is also a good opportunity for them to get into Europe by winning the cup, so it will be a tough game – but we will have a strong side still.

“Whether we field a more experienced side in the second leg will depend on the outcome here.

“We do have three days after the weekend game to recover as opposed to only two this time.

“In any case some of the players have done well in the Carling Cup and I want to give them a chance to keep that going.”

Wenger is likely to put some experience alongside his young guns in the form of Martin Keown, Ray Parlour, Edu and Kolo Toure, who were all on the substitute’s bench for Sunday’s 2-0 win at Aston Villa, which sent the Gunners back to the top of the Premiership.