‘There is no replacement for him’
Paul Merson has ruled out bringing in a replacement for the injured Santi Cazorla in January, despite the playmaker being out with injury problems.
The Spaniard has been out of action since the 6-0 Champions League win over Ludogorets at the Emirates in mid-October.
However, despite Jack Wilshere being on loan at Bournemouth, Wenger will opt to stick with the midfield options he has rather than bring in re-enforcements.
“In midfield we have many players, but there’s two reasons. We have the numbers in quality. Secondly, in January, you wouldn’t necessarily find a Cazorla even if you wanted to,” Wenger said.
“For me it’s very bad news because with surgery you never know the date they will play again.
“I try best to avoid surgery because it creates anxiety and rehab, in this case unfortunately we have come to that conclusion and now they tell me he will be out for at least two months but two can be three.
“Santi is desperate to play. Hes only happy on the football pitch. He wants to get out of that vicious circle of coming out and back in again.”
“What’s going wrong is that he has an inflammation at the back of his foot – no one knows where it comes from. He has been treated against inflammation. The injections have not got rid of it. The consultant decided to have exploratory surgery to see what is going on in there.”
By Ben Kelly – @benkelly_10
