Manchester United legend Wayne Rooney believes that Mikel Arteta could have a ‘problem’ with his Arsenal squad after the international break.
While extending their unbeaten run to 14 games in all competitions, a draw points against Sunderland saw the Gunners’ lead at the top of the Premier League table cut to four points after Manchester City’s superb win over Liverpool on Sunday.
Arsenal’s impressive run comes despite several injuries to key players, particularly in the forward line, with Mikel Merino once again deployed as a makeshift striker at the Stadium of Light.
Viktor Gyokeres, Gabriel Martinelli, Noni Madueke, Kai Havertz, Martin Odegaard and Gabriel Jesus are all currently sidelined with injuries, but Arsenal’s impressive summer recruitment has left them better equipped to deal with an injury crisis than in seasons gone by.
Speaking prior to the weekend’s action, Arteta hinted that several of his currently injured attackers could be back and available for selection after the international break.
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The return of key attackers will surely represent a welcome boost for the Gunners ahead of key games against Tottenham and Chelsea to round out the month.
However, Rooney believes a fully-fit Arsenal squad could actually begin to pose some problems for Arteta as the season wears on.
‘That can cause problems, similar to Liverpool when they sign too many players and you have got players who are getting left on the bench who normally would be playing, that can cause problems as well in the dressing room,’ Rooney told The Overlap Fan Debate with Sky Bet.
‘I don’t think it’s always a good thing to have everyone; if you have such a good squad, it’s actually sometimes probably quite refreshing for the manager to have them out.’
Rooney also insisted that it was too early to crown Arsenal as champions-elect and said the pressure will only ramp up further as the season drags on.
‘We’re only 11 games into the Premier League season; there’s a long way to go,’ he added.
‘When you start getting into January and the league has started to take its shape and you know roughly where teams are going to finish, then that’s when it could be a bit nervy for Arsenal.’
Arteta, meanwhile, said he was looking forward to having fresh faces back in the squad and said his side are in need of a ‘reset’ over the international break.
‘Now we reset with the international break, get the [international] players back nice and healthy, the ones that are not healthy make sure that they get healthy, and we go again,’ said the Spaniard after Saturday’s draw.
‘We’ll look back at what we’ve done, take all of the positive things that we do, the things that we have the opportunity to improve as well and start to plan what is coming because it’s going to be very demanding.’
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