Arsenal: Is it a lack of faith in Bernd Leno, or what?

Arsenal are heading into their second match and one key change isn’t being made – Bernd Leno won’t start. Is this possibly a lack of faith?

Arsenal manager Unai Emery has announced that he will keep the faith in Petr Cech following numerous gaffs by the veteran in the opener against Manchester City. All this despite the fact that Bernd Leno, a perfectly capable No. 1 keeper who is apt at playing the ball with his feet, from the back, is waiting on the bench.

Big picture, I don’t see why Leno hasn’t been thrown out there. When you put all the pieces into one scope and look at what is needed, Leno seems like the more logical option. If for nothing else than because he just plays the style that Emery wants from a keeper.

But when you take a step back, I kind of understand Emery’s logic. That’s not to say I agree with it, but I get it. He’s a new manager at a massive club, following up one of the best manager’s in Premier League history.

That’s a big ask. The pressure is cooking and the fans are already riled up because they spend their lives in a permanent state of being riled up.

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Not to mention all the haters in the media. So many people are going to question him after every single match and it will be down to him to block this noise out and concentrate on his longtime goals at the club.

So why start Cech? Because Cech is reliability. Even when he makes mistakes, you still know what you can rely on him for. He’s been around the game, he is the captain, he is someone that a new manager loves to have because he can serve as a manager on the pitch himself.

Leno isn’t that. Leno is a wild card. You toss Leno out there with no Laurent Koscielny as captain and suddenly, your foundation of established Arsenal guys is gone. Who are you going to trust as captain then? The guy who hasn’t signed the contract? The guy that is in just as much hot water as you?

It’s not an easy choice. So yes, it is a lack of faith in Leno. But not in the usual sense. It is a lack of faith in him in the sense of what was laid out above. He wants someone he can trust and Leno hasn’t earned that yet.

There, I’ve gone and justified it to myself.