Arsenal: Squad players must now prove value

Arsenal face a schedule of seven games in 19 days. With such a busy period looming, Unai Emery will now need his squad players to prove their value.

A strong starting XI is important. A team cannot challenge if it lacks a competent and quality first XI. But having a squad of players, a deep collection that can be rotated between and ensure that the level of performance is maintained throughout the year is far more impactful. It is far more beneficial to consistent over 38 games than fleetingly brilliant in ten.

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It is during the most stressful periods of the season that having a squad of capable players is most necessary. And that is what Arsenal now face: they play seven games over the next 19 days.

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Head coach Unai Emery was asked about this testing upcoming period in his pre-match press conference on Thursday afternoon. He spoke about the need to have various players at various positions, all of which can play several games in a short space of time:

"“Our players – every player – is prepared to play a lot of matches and when we decided how we can do our squad for this season, we were thinking also to achieve and to have different players and two players in general for each position in the squad, for us to use them when we are taking some injuries or when we are playing a lot of matches, like we are going to play now.”"

It is during these periods that Arsenal’s squad players must prove their value.

These are the seven matches that the Gunners play over the next three weeks or so (all are in the Premier League unless stated):

• 21/10 – Sheffield United (A)
• 24/10 – Vitoria SC (H) – Europa League
• 27/10 – Crystal Palace (H)
• 30/10 – Liverpool (A) – EFL Cup
• 02/11 – Wolves (H)
• 06/11 – Vitoria SC (A)
• 09/11 – Leicester City (A)

While the opposition may not seem the toughest — matches against Sheffield United, Palace, Wolves and Leicester in the Premier League are managable, if not entirely easy — the space between the matches makes this a very difficult period, and it is what requires Emery to lean on his squad players.

This is especially true for those that are predomiantly used in the Europa League and EFL Cup. The young players like Reiss Nelson, Gabriel Martinelli and Joe Willock will once again have to step forwards, while Ainsley Maitland-Niles, Shkodran Mustafi and Calum Chambers might have to take on a role of leadership among a young and inexperienced team, especially for the Carabao Cup trip to Anfield.

But these are periods of the schedule that you have a squad for. Depth, rotation and rest are vital for any team throughout a long and arduous season. And Arsenal are about to experience that. To navigate the campaign well, then, they need their squad players to prove their value, starting over the next month.