Arsene Wenger claims to have 'selection solutions' reather than selection problems at Arsenal

 

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has welcomed his “selection solutions” as he tries to put a team together capable of beating Barclays Premier League leaders Chelsea tomorrow.

The Gunners boss made the expected wholesale changes for Wednesday night's Capital One Cup ties against Coventry, with Theo Walcott and Andrey Arshavin both on the scoresheet in a 6-1 victory which also saw summer signing Olivier Giroud open his account.

Captain Thomas Vermaelen is expected to return to lead the side for tomorrow's lunchtime kick-off, having missed the 1-1 draw at Manchester City with a virus.

That means Laurent Koscielny, whose goal at the Etihad Stadium extended Arsenal's unbeaten start to the new campaign, could drop back down to the bench, along with the likes of Walcott and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, another scorer in midweek.

For Wenger, though, it is a welcome headache.

"I have selection solutions, it is not a problem to have good players," he said.

"When you don't have good players people say 'but you do not have good players'. When you have good players they say you have a problem as well.

"You cannot play a season with two centre-backs, you just want good players in every position.

"At the moment they are all doing well, I just will select the players who are most suited to play against our opponent.

"At the end of the season everybody will have played.

"It doesn't exist anymore a position where one player can play all the games. The games are too intense, too repeated, and if you look well at the players who play in every single game, look how they are at 30, 31, it tells you a lot about that."

Arsenal's parent holding company yesterday posted another healthy pre-tax profit, returning £36.6million for the year ending May 31, 2012 which was up from the equivalent 2011 figures of £14.8m.

The Gunners, though, could not escape an inevitable increase in wages from £124m to £143m, which represented 60.9% of the club's football revenues.

"Cash and bank balances" stood at £153.6m, slightly down from a year ago, with net debt stable at £98.9m, most of which is tied in with the long-term mortgage following the club's move to the Emirates Stadium.

Chief executive Ivan Gazidis feels this all puts Arsenal in good stead to fulfil UEFA's Financial Fair Play guidelines for clubs to live within their means.

"The important thing to keep emphasising is that we exist, first and foremost, as a football club not a business," Gazidis said on Arsenal Player.

"The reason we talk about the financial results at all is that it provides the platform for us to be successful on the field.

"We are in a good position and we can look forward with confidence that our manager has the funds to drive the club forward and we will continue to be successful in the future."

Gazidis added: "We do have money to spend as and when the manager feels it will push the squad forward, but it is nothing like £150m (cash balance).

"We use those funds throughout the year to pay our expenses, including player wages."

PA

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