Wilshere rested, Mertesacker handed Arsenal captaincy

Jan 26, 2013 1:49:00 PM

The England international had been due to lead out the Gunners in Saturday's FA Cup fourth round tie against Brighton, but Arsene Wenger has had a late change of heart

By Wayne Veysey

Per Mertesacker will captain Arsenal against Brighton on Saturday after Arsene Wenger decided to rest Jack Wilshere at the eleventh hour.

Wilshere had been due to lead the team in the absence of regular skipper Thomas Vermaelen and his vice-captain Mikel Arteta.

But Wenger has had a change of heart and rings the changes for the FA Cup fourth-round tie, with Wilshere, Santi Cazorla, Bacary Sagna, Kieran Gibbs and the injured Vermaelen dropping out of the side that started against West Ham in midweek.

Carl Jenkinson, Andre Santos and Laurent Koscielny will join Per Mertesacker in the back four, with Tomas Rosicky linking up with Aaron Ramsey and fit-again Abou Diaby in midfield.

In attack there is no Theo Walcott, who is on the bench, so Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Lukas Podolski and Olivier Giroud feature.

Arsenal: Szczesny, Jenkinson, Mertesacker (c), Koscielny, Santos, Diaby, Ramsey, Rosicky, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Podolski, Giroud

Subs: Mannone, Sagna, Gibbs, Wilshere, Cazorla, Arshavin, Walcott

Brighton: Ankergren; Calderon, Greer, El-Abd, Bridge; Bridcutt, Hammond, Lopez; Buckley, Barnes, Ulloa

Subs: Kuszczak (GK), Painter, Dicker, Orlandi, LuaLua, Vicente, Mackail-Smith.

Sign up with William Hill for a free bet up to £25
Sign up with bet365 for a free bet up to £200
Sign up to Paddy Power for £250 in free bets
Sign up today with Coral and get a £50 FREE bet - no strings attached!
Sign up today with BetVictor and get a £25 FREE BET!

play

open

Inside Goal.Com

Top 10 all-time Champions League scorers
As the competition moves within days of its much-anticipated conclusion at Wembley, Goal profiles the most prolific players in its history
'Mario, you will never redeem yourself'
Mario Gotze's injury means the playmaker has now played his final game for Borussia Dortmund. In an open letter, a fan tells of his emotion at his controversial switch to Bayern
BVB's rise from the abyss to European contenders
BVB have recovered from teetering on the edge of bankruptcy to take their place on Europe's grandest stage, humbling their opponents on Saturday, Bayern Munich, along the way
Transfer Talk: Terry and Nani wanted by Galatasaray
Get your daily dose of all the speculation from around the globe as clubs cast their eye towards summer reinforcements
Soulless EPL must face up to grim reality
After a season marred by controversy and a failure of its top teams to put up a credible Champions League challenge, the world's supposed best league is falling behind