Djourou injury compounds Arsenal’s recent trophy misery
Published:With talks of a possible quadruple being spoken of at Arsenal only three weeks ago, there is now a strong chance they will end the season without collecting any silverware, particularly as important defender Johan Djourou’s campaign is over.
After defeats to Birmingham in the Carling Cup final and their elimination at the hands of Barcelona in the Champions League, Arsenal’s season was quickly falling apart.
Spirits were further dampened when Arsenal lost to Manchester United in the FA Cup quarter finals and if the defeat was not bad enough, the news that Djourou will not play again this season will seriously threaten their Premier League title chances.
Djourou dislocated a shoulder in the defeat and joins fellow central defender Thomas Vermaelen on the long-term injury list.
Arsenal are now 15/8 in the Premier League betting and are currently three points behind leaders Manchester United, but they do have a game in hand.
However, if they are to remain in contention over the closing ten games of the season, then the pressure will be on Laurent Koscielny and Sebastien Squillaci to form a partnership at the heart of the defence.
Both have looked shaky in their first seasons in English football, but there will never be a better time to endear themselves to the Arsenal fans.
If Wenger does not fancy pairing these two, he does have the option of moving Alex Song back from midfield to defence or Ignasi Miquel, although the 19-year-old is still a big rookie having played just two senior matches.
The change in defence comes just days after first-choice goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny injured a finger in the defeat to Barcelona, which has left Arsenal scouting for an emergency replacement to back up stand-in Manuel Almunia.
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