Theo Walcott opens the scoring for Arsenal (Getty Images)
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Arsene Wenger is rarely a man to break with tradition but Wednesday evening's Carabao Cup match against Doncaster Rovers looks set to be slightly different than usual.
The Arsenal manager has traditionally treated this competition as a chance to blood his promising youngsters.
But with a burgeoning first team squad and several senior players still searching for form and fitness, it looks like he will be picking his B-team rather than his U19s.
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"Calum Chambers will be involved against Doncaster,” the Frenchman confirmed this week. “Jack Wilshere is involved too. Mesut [Ozil] is training again, but [he will not feature]. He has a little inflammation of his knee.
"Danny [Welbeck] had a scan, we don’t know how bad his groin injury is but he will certainly be out until the international break. Coquelin as well. Debuchy is coming back slowly."
"Yes [it will be a mix], but it will be a similar team to the one that played against Cologne.”
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Can Darren Ferguson, son of Wenger’s old foe Sir Alex, make the most of the reserve team put out and claim a famous win for his side?
Here’s everything you need to know about the game:
What time does it start?
The game kicks off at 7.45pm (BST) at Emirates Stadium on Wednesday 20 September.
Where can I watch it?
The game will not be broadcast on UK television but you can follow all the updates via this page.
It’s a big game for…
Wilshere is set for his first start of the season (Getty)
Jack Wilshere. The England international has endured a tough time of late, with a broken leg towards the end of last season ruining the last of his loan spell at Bournemouth and hampering his pre-season. Nevertheless, Wenger still has faith in the midfielder and with Arsenal’s midfield spots still looking up for grabs, some strong performances in cup competition could see him come back into contention.
Player to watch…
Nelson (front) has huge potential and may have a chance to prove he can live up to the hype (Getty)
Reiss Nelson. The 17-year-old is the latest in a long line of promising youngsters to come through the Arsenal academy with huge hopes for the future. The forward has earned the backing of his more senior colleagues and fans of the club have huge expectations for him following several eye-catching performances for the youth teams. He now needs to prove he can live up to the hype.
Update from the Emirates: Arsenal 1-0 Doncaster (77 mins)
The hosts are growing frustrated here and have failed to create any clear cut chances in this second-half. Theo Walcott, scorer of the only goal so far, has just gone off for Alex Iwobi.
The visitors snuck in a late goal in injury time through Darikwa but it offered little consolation to what was otherwise a demoralising evening at Stamford Bridge.
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