I can understand why Unai Emery would want to rest eight players for Sunday’s visit of Crystal Palace and trust in his squad.
After pulling off a brilliant 1-0 win at Napoli only three days previously, Emery wanted to conserve his players’ energy for the run-in.
He clearly thought that an attacking trio of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Alexandre Lacazette and Mesut Ozil would be enough firepower to blow Palace away.
Unai Emery's plan to rest Arsenal's key players against Crystal Palace on Sunday backfired
His plan backfired. The problem is that Arsenal do not boast anywhere near the same strength in depth as sides like Manchester City. The forwards simply did not have the support behind them to thrive.
An inexperienced midfield combination of Matteo Guendouzi and Mohamed Elneny struggled to control the game. Behind them was a makeshift defence that included Konstantinos Mavropanos, starting only his second game of the season, and Carl Jenkinson, whose last appearance in an Arsenal shirt was almost two months ago.
By half-time, Emery was already having to change his plans. What will disappoint him most is the manner in which his team conceded all three goals.
Emery has inadvertently made Arsenal's quest for Champions League football more difficult
Shkodran Mustafi — one of the more experienced members of the side — was at fault for the first two. After failing to pick up Christian Benteke at a free-kick, he let Wilfried Zaha get beyond him all too easily from a long ball. The defence as a whole stood like statues for the third goal as James McArthur scored from a corner.
Palace are not a side to be underestimated, especially away from home where they have beaten Manchester City and narrowly lost to Liverpool.
With Tottenham and Manchester United both losing, this was a perfect chance for Arsenal to tighten their grip on a Champions League berth. Now, they must win the Europa League or get the job done in their next four league games. Three of those are away, at Wolves, Leicester and Burnley, and will not be easy given Arsenal’s struggles on the road.
In trying to
