Following the defeat to Southampton the manager should consider a review of the squad.
It was a disappointing night for Arsenal on Tuesday as they lost 2-1 to Southampton at the Emirates Stadium in the Capital One Cup.
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Despite the fact the Gunners have spent big on Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez over the past two summers and not seen any significant departures, there are still concerns over Arsene Wenger’s squad.
The Frenchman needs to be brutal about who is good enough and here are seven current first team players that CaughtOffside thinks should be axed.
Mikel Arteta
It’s becoming something of a theme in North London that Wenger names a captain who is not good enough to really be included in the starting XI.
Last time round it was Thomas Vermaelen, with the Belgian generally warming the bench before FC Barcelona’s somewhat surprising £15m summer bid and Arteta appears to be in the same mould.
Joel Campbell
After his 2014 World Cup heroics with Costa Rica many fans at the Emirates were excited at the prospect of Campbell returning after a relatively successful season on-loan with Olympiakos as well.
Yet if the performance against the Saints is anything to go by the Greek top tier is probably about the right level for the 22-year-old and he is not cut out for life under Wenger.
Francis Coquelin
One of those players that it’s easy to forget still plays and only seems to be wheeled out when the League Cup comes around.
At 23-years-old Coquelin is past the point of being considered a promising youngster and although the Frenchman seems prepared to sit on the bench, that doesn’t mean he’s useful.
Mathieu Flamini
Many fans of the North Londoners would defend this midfielder, claiming he adds the grit and physicality that their style of play often lacks.
Yet in reality Flamini is essentially a thug on the pitch, who is more likely to receive a yellow card than complete an important tackle and he is certainly not the answer to their holding midfield problems.
Nacho Monreal
A few decent performances of late may have deceived Gunners supporters into believing the Spaniard is actually a decent fit after all.
It’s not as if Wenger can afford to sell defenders currently with a real lack of options at the back, but as soon as possible better competition/cover for Kieran Gibbs is needed.
Lukas Podolski
This may be another unpopular choice, with the German’s likeable personality, huge number of international caps and fearsome left foot making him a real favourite.
However, in reality it’s been a long time since he was a first choice for club and country and whilst Podolski can fill in, he can’t really be relied upon for impact.
Yaya Sanogo
At 21-years-old it may seem a little unfair to jump on the back of this young striker and judge him just yet, but those that have seen Sanogo lead the line will have realised great improvement is needed.
In fact to reach the level required the Frenchman may have too far to go and with options in attack lacking, the youngster is being called upon far too much.