Arsenal round-up: Manchester United to play weakened team; Olivier Giroud waiting on Wenger; Nice’s Jean Michael Seri linked

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Manchester United could play a weakened team against Arsenal on Sunday, which will provide a huge chance to the Gunners to close the gap on the top four. Jose Mourinho’s side are in the semi-finals of the Europa League and the Portuguese manager believes that the competition provides an easier route into the Champions League. The following quotes from the United boss are reported in the Mirror:

“Thinking about us as a team, winning this competition (the Europa League) would be a good achievement and would allow us to be back in the Champions League. If we have to rest players next weekend then we are going to do that.

“In the relation to the Premier League I think it is too late because in April we played nine matches, seven of them in the Premier League and we had too many problems. We had too many players absent.”

These quotes will increase the confidence at Arsenal as they would have been dreading the weekend after their awful performance against Tottenham. They have an outside chance of finishing in the top four, but to do so, they need to win all of their matches. Arsene Wenger will be taking these comments with a pinch of salt as it is impossible to know exactly what is going on in Mourinho’s head. If he does play a weakened team, that is a huge shot in the arm for the Gunners’ top four hopes.

Meanwhile, Olivier Giroud’s agent has confirmed that the striker won’t decide his future until he knows if Arsene Wenger will be staying at the club or not. The French international is contracted until the summer of 2019, but there is interest from Marseille and he may be tempted to move back to France. The following quotes from his agent are being reported in the Mirror:

“Olivier wants to help his team qualify for the Champions League. When we know exactly what Arsene Wenger is doing, we will ask ourselves questions. We will think about what is possible and what is not possible.”

This underlines how difficult it is for Arsenal to plan for the summer until Arsene Wenger’s future is confirmed. There will be players at the club that will be waiting on the decision like Giroud, while it is impossible to bring players in until the future direction of the club is set in stone. In terms of the Frenchman, it might be the right time for him to move on. He has been a very good player for Arsenal, but he is no longer a regular.

The Guardian report that Arsenal and Tottenham are rivalling PSG for the signing of Ivory Coast international Jean Michael Seri. The midfielder currently plays for Nice and he has had an outstanding season for the Ligue 1 club, helping them to Champions League qualification. He has scored six goals and provided nine assists in the league, showing his ability in the final third. The French club value him at £20 million and the player has two years left on his current contract.

There have been a number of players linked with both Arsenal and Tottenham during recent weeks. It is difficult to know how much truth are in the reports as this is the time of year that agents try to get their players names out there in the media. Seri is a very good player and would add some much-needed energy to the Arsenal midfield. However, there will be a lot of teams looking at him and it could be a difficult deal to do, especially if they don’t finish in the top four.

Featured image: All rights reserved by Emrah Partal