Arsenal: Arsene Wenger setting himself for failure

Arsene Wenger has confirmed that David Ospina will play in Sunday’s Carabao Cup final. The Arsenal manager, though, is only setting himself for failure and critique.

As has been the case perhaps ever since the time of Jens Lehmann, Arsenal do not have a clear and defined starting goalkeeper. While, ever since his 2015 arrival, Petr Cech has been the unquestioned Premier League number one, he has had to share time with both Wojciech Szczesny and David Ospina throughout that time.

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Now, Arsene Wenger has always protested that he has two world-class goalkeepers in his squad, and believes that he has a duty to offer regular and meaningful minutes to both players. That, inevitably, requires a degree of rotation that most managers would not be comfortable. It is a degree of rotation that I too am not comfortable with.

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Nevertheless, that is the way in which Wenger has chosen and will choose to his manage his goalkeeping situation. And he has indeed confirmed that that is exactly what will take place in Sunday’s Carabao Cup final. Speaking in his pre-match press conference ahead of Thursday night’s welcoming of FK Ostersunds to the Emirates for their Europa League second leg, looking ahead to the weekend when asked about whether he would start Ospina, Wenger did not shy away from providing an answer:

"“Yes. It’s always a difficult decision but I think they are clear about that. Since the start of the season, it’s clear. He played in the whole competition. I have two world-class goalkeepers and I decided from the start on to have clarity in the games they play. I maintain that.”"

Unfortunately, such a decision only sets himself up for failure and critique.

In starting Ospina, only bad things can happen. That is not to say that Ospina is a bad player that he is only going to make mistakes, but if he plays well, no one will necessarily praise Wenger for starting him, as Ospina is simply doing his job as a goalkeeper, and if he plays poorly, the wrath and ridicule of the fanbase and media will be great.

It seems like a risk that is not worth taking. History, also, does not speak well of such decisions. Remember Szczesny started in the 2011 League Cup final, only to clamber his way to conceding a late Obafemi Martins winner?

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And yet, there is not, perhaps, enough between the two goalkeepers to truly bemoan the decision, even with the trap that Wenger is undoubtedly setting up for himself. The solution is an obvious one: Buy a goalkeeper good enough to command starts in whatever fixture. Oh dear.