Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere will miss the second leg of the Bayern Munich tie in Munich on Wednesday with an injured ankle, according to the Daily Telegraph:
Wilshere, Arsène Wenger’s most influential player, sustained the injury against Tottenham in the north London derby nine days ago and has been recuperating in Dubai.
He was still in the Emirate yesterday and, with Arsenal training at London Colney this morning before flying to Munich, he is not expected to make the trip to Germany.
Since Wilshere missed the better part of 14 months, it makes sense not to risk him in what is probably a lost cause (although part of me wonders if just...nahhhh). And normally, against a team like Bayern, not having a midfielder who bombs forward and leaves space behind may not be as big a loss as it seems, except in this case, Arsenal need to score. A lot.
Aaron Ramsey will most likely step into the midfield alongside Mikel Arteta on Wednesday. Ramsey's engine will have to be at the top of its performance for this one.
Bayern will be missing a bit of their own midfield, too:
There was some positive news for Arsenal with news that Franck Ribery will not be available. The French forward suffered a ligament strain in his left ankle during his side’s 3-2 win over Fortuna Düsseldorf on Saturday.
Arjen Robben is expected to replace Ribery, but midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger and defender Jerome Boateng, who are banned, will also miss the match.
Still, Arsenal will be heavy underdogs, and perhaps resting some key players for Swansea on Saturday makes more sense. What do you all think?