Arsenal's Ever-Changing Goalkeeping Situation: Szczesny Out , Almunia Back In

Coming off of the loss to Barcelona in the second leg of the Round of 16 Champions League clash, Arsenal are looking a little worse for wear. It was a very interesting game from a neutral standpoint, but largely one-sided. The home side and favorite Barcelona dominated in possession as well as in opportunities to score, unlike in the first leg.

It was obvious that, despite their goal advantage going into the second leg, Arsenal would have an uphill battle at the Camp Nou. Within the first few minutes, Barcelona were clearly out in front and Arsenal on the back foot. Barcelona forced many tackles from Arsenal's defense.

I was actually amazed at how well Arsenal's defense held up under such constant pressure, I must credit Johan Djourou and Laurent Koscielny. Many, before this match, said that the two Arsenal center-backs would be their weak link. They did well to keep Barcelona at bay throughout the first half.

The Barcelona chances piled up, with little to no relief for the Gunners. Barca were doing what they do best and Arsenal could barely get out of their own penalty area, let alone their own half. The Arsenal team took a serious blow when young keeper Wojciech Szczesny had to be substituted off after saving Daniel Alves’ free kick. He suffered a dislocated finger in Tuesday night's Champions League defeat to Barcelona at the Camp Nou when he saved Alves' 16th-minute free kick.

Former No. 1 Manuel Almunia, 33, came on for the injured Szczesny and went on to perform very admirably for the remainder of the match, making several great saves despite having only made 10 appearances all season and missing four months due to injury.

It has been confirmed by Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger that young shot stopper Szczesny is expected miss the next six weeks with a dislocated finger.

“We have Wojciech out—in my opinion for six weeks. We have Fabianski out for the rest of the season. We absolutely need some cover in goal."

The great performance by Almunia in the Champions League can give Arsenal fans some confidence going forward, but Arsenal now have only one recognized fit keeper. With Lukasz Fabianski ruled out for the rest of the season with a shoulder injury and on loan keeper Vito Mannone suffering from a hamstring injury, Almunia is Arsenal’s only experienced fit keeper available for the upcoming FA Cup tie at Old Trafford.

Wenger has had some words of praise for Almunia following his performance at the Camp Nou, saying, “He is very professional, [has a] very dignified attitude and overall he has done very well. Yes, he has done quite well when he came on and was quite busy in the final part of the game and he did very well [against Barcelona]. “

That being said Arsenal are not secure with only one fit experienced keeper. "We need now an experienced goalkeeper as cover for Almunia because Mannone is out for six weeks so we cannot call on him," Wenger said. It is expected that Wenger will ask the Barclays Premier League for permission to bring in experienced cover.

It’s a shame that Szczesny is injured, as he was having such great form as Arsenal's No. 1 keeper, but Arsenal will have to continue on as injuries plague the team still challenging for the FA Cup and PL titles.

Arsenal can still challenge after the crushing defeat to Barca and the loss of Szczesny. It’s down to the players to see themselves though to the end.