Skipper hits out as Arsenal humiliated
MERTESACKER: NOBODY JUSTIFIED THEIR SELECTION
London
Arsenal defender Per Mertesacker accused his team-mates of playing like they did not want to defend the FA Cup after the holders lost 4-2 at second-tier Nottingham Forest on Sunday.
Manager Arsene Wenger made wholesale changes to the side that drew with Chelsea during the week but even with many firstchoice names absent it was alarming to see Arsenal outplayed by a callow Championship side.
“You couldn’t see that we really wanted to defend it,” the German said. “This round is always the toughest. You face a Championship side away and you need to be ready, but for the majority of the game we were not.”
Two goals from American Eric Lichaj before the break and penalties by Ben Brereton and Kieran Dowell after it condemned Arsenal to their earliest exit since the 1995/96 season.
Mertesacker had equalised Lichaj’s early header but Arsenal were overwhelmed by a side 14th in the Championship.
“The manager made a lot of changes, gave a lot of trust to players who haven’t played a lot recently and I don’t think anybody justified their selection today,” he said.
“That sums it up I think. In the second half there was a little bit more spirit from ourselves, but in the duels you could see they out-battled us.”
Wenger, who watched from the stands because of a three-match touchline ban, refused to blame his team selection.
“We played a very good Forest team who were sharp and focused. The challenges were decisive. Overall our performance wasn’t good enough,” he said.
“When you don’t win the selection is always questioned. I believe we had an experienced team – eight or nine internationals. It would be easy to think that was the problem.” –