Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has lauded the strength of his current squad and has stated that the added maturity of the players at his disposal can lead the North London club to silverware this season.
The Emirates Stadium side have added Granit Xhaka, Lucas Perez and Shkodran Mustafi to their squad this summer at considerable expense, bolstering the team’s spine as a result.
The Arsenal fans have urged Wenger to sign new players in central areas and it now appears that the French coach has plenty of options in key positions once everyone is fit.
The increase in competition for places has seen Jack Wilshere farmed out on loan to Bournemouth for the campaign, while only a handful of players are now guaranteed a starting berth in the side when available.
Wenger has stated that the new additions have added to one of the strongest squads he has had at his disposal at Arsenal and that this group has the experience to challenge for major honours.
“This is my strongest squad, certainly, and certainly the oldest as well,” he told The Daily Mail.
“I would say it’s the most mature squad I’ve had for a long time, because they are men. They are not 19 or 20 years old, they are 24, 27, 28 and the whole squad is quite mature.
“It’s the first time for a long time that I’ve had a team of what you can call men ready to compete.
“We have to show that we are good enough to beat everybody else. I always believed we had a chance, even when we had young players. But certainly I haven’t had a squad of players like this for a long time, who have enough experience to compete.
“I was used to playing with my younger squads when you build a stadium because you don’t have the resources. Now I have a team with more experienced players. The squad is between 24 and 30, basically. That’s where you have a good combination of physical strength and experience.
“But we want to keep giving chances to young players and get the mixture right.”
