No shame in fielding second string Arsenal

Arsene Wenger will unashamedly send out one of the most inexperienced sides in Arsenal’s history for tonight’s Carling Cup quarter-final clash at Manchester United.

Wenger is seeking to draw a line under the controversial recent clashes between the two sides at Old Trafford.

Indeed, none of those selected in his 16-man squad for tonight’s game was in the starting line-up for the incident-packed Barclays Premiership fixture earlier this season.

Even the likes of Cesc Fabregas and Jose Reyes have been rested, while Pascal Cygan has joined Edu, Gilberto Silva and Jeremie Aliadiere on the injury list.

With Thierry Henry, Dennis Bergkamp and Patrick Vieira all carrying knocks, Wenger has made sure of taking no risks with his first-team squad ahead of Saturday’s league game against Birmingham.

In their Carling Cup wins against Manchester City and Everton in previous rounds, Arsenal had at least one experienced figure in the side, such as Cygan or Edu.

Last season, meanwhile, the likes of Sylvain Wiltord, Kanu and Martin Keown played prominent roles in their run to the last four.

However, this time around, it is a below-strength team even in terms of Arsenal’s second-string side that will take on United.

“I feel there are many players in there who are close to Premier League level,” Wenger told the club’s website, www.arsenal.com.

“They have earned their chance and it would be unfair not to give them the opportunity to show how good they are.”

France Under-21 international full-back Gael Clichy has at least returned to the squad after a two-month absence with an ankle injury.

Frankie Simek is back after a loan spell at QPR, while Ryan Smith is a surprise inclusion after injuring his knee ligaments against Everton.

“It was a big relief to see that Ryan would not be out. But he is a little short of fitness because he only returned to full training on Monday,” revealed Wenger.

With Cygan absent, Wenger is again likely to adopt an all-Swiss central defensive partnership of Philippe Senderos and Johan Djourou.

“Pascal has a back problem he got when we travelled to Eindhoven. He will be back soon but he will not be available for this game or for Saturday,” confirmed the Arsenal boss.

Much is therefore expected of Arturo Lupoli, the 17-year-old Italian striker who scored twice against Everton, and Quincy Owusu-Abeyie, who tore David Moyes’ side apart in the second-half of that tie.

Indeed, vice-chairman David Dein stressed how highly this crop of youngsters is viewed at Highbury as he pledged not to be drawn into attempting to match Chelsea in the transfer market.

“You have seen what players like Cesc Fabregas and Arturo Lupoli can do, and others who will play against United in a sold-out stadium,” he said.

“The only thing you are sure about in bringing in big names is big salaries. That does not guarantee you success. Sticking 11 expensive players on the pitch does not guarantee you anything.

“AC Milan have been doing that for years. Every club has to balance its books but Chelsea are a one-off and if they keep spending money, there is not much we can do about it.

“We have to let them do their business and we will do ours. But throwing money at the problem, with one star after another, does not necessarily solve it because you kill the other stars.

“There has to be a blend. People had never heard of Fabregas, for instance, before he came to Highbury.”

How times change. After all, the Spanish teenager is already considered too much of a first-team regular to take part even in a Carling Cup quarter-final at Old Trafford.