Gunnerism IV: Will Wenger Play His Cards Right for Arsenal?

December was always going to be a tough one for the Gunners.

Contending in three competitions—the Premier League, Carling Cup, and the Champions League—Wenger must surely be prioritizing what’s more important, and he can afford to lose. Historically, he has always fielded a young side for the Carling Cup matches. It gives aspiring first-teamers such as Fran Merida Perez and Lucas Fabianski a chance to prove their worth, while at the same time keeping the likes of Gilberto semi-happy by giving them some playing time.

The Premiership is no doubt Wenger’s top priority. Having finished fourth best in successive years was never going to be satisfactory enough. The fans want it, the team wants it, Wenger wants it.

Plus, he has a point to prove.

He has been asking the footballing world to give his team time for over two years now—and that time had better be now.

Arsenal has already qualified for the next round. In the rounds to follow, there is no way of avoiding the likes of Real, Barca, Milan, Inter, and the remaining three of our very own top four.

In my opinion, as far as the Champions League is concerned, lifting the trophy is the only thing that matters from Arsenal’s perspective. Exiting at any other stage is essentially one and the same. If anything, it will only help our domestic campaign.

In between now and lifting the trophy, there are just too many variables to be able to plan a decent course of action. Worrying about finishing at the top of the group and having to face a weaker side next round might as well be labelled as shortsightedness.

To top it off, the match is at the Emirates Stadium. Keeping all these factors in mind, I wouldn’t be surprised if Arsenal fielded a relatively “young” side against Steaua Bucharest.

We have an unbelievable nine games scheduled for December. Middlesbrough is actually before Steaua, followed by Chelsea, Blackburn (Carling Cup), Tottenham, Portsmouth, and Everton, in that order.

That's more than two games a week for the next month. January will be equally—if not more—tough, with the African Cup of nations and resources stretched to the max.

Although the transfer market is always an option, Wenger's shopping habits are pretty conservative. He actually made a profit this season!

It would be wise to save the best cards for the most important hands. We all know that Arsenal has the cards—just how he will play them remains to be seen.