OSPINA OUT AS ARSENE GETS SERIOUS
ON A critical night for Arsene Wenger, the Arsenal manager played it safe. The club’s recognised Europa League goalkeeper David Ospina missed out and usual No 1 Petr Cech took his place. The official line from Arsenal was that Ospina had suffered an ankle injury in the final training session before last night’s clash. Mysteriously, though, when asked after that training session whether he had a fully-fit squad available for the match against CSKA Moscow, Wenger replied: ‘We basically have everybody available.’ The early indications on Wednesday were that Ospina felt he was fit to play. However Wenger insisted last night that, following a scan, the keeper has been ruled out for up to three weeks. Either way, you would imagine Wenger didn’t need too much of an excuse to play Cech last night, despite agreeing with Ospina before the season that he would be his Europa League No 1. As much as Wenger hates to admit it, the Europa League is serious business now. In the past, the Frenchman has always been rather dismissive of the competition. But not even the most optimistic of Arsenal fans would believe they have any chance of securing a top-four Premier League place this season. So, if Arsenal are to sit around European football’s top table next season, it will have to come via the back door. Playing Cech last night was testament to the huge significance that now rests on the competition for Wenger, not only in terms of Champions League qualification but for his future at the club. Win the Europa League and he will almost certainly be given the chance to see out the final 12 months of his contract, despite fan unrest. Another season without Champions League football? Then Wenger’s future will come under serious scrutiny when his position is reviewed in the summer. Meanwhile, Henrikh Mkhitaryan is facing an anxious wait to discover the extent of the knee injury he suffered last night. Wenger confirmed the forward will miss Sunday’s clash against Southampton.