Olympiakos v Arsenal:FLEET STREET has been waiting for this moment and Arsene Wenger knew it. To the delight of the headline writers, the Arsenal manager has decided to sprinkle the Hollywood stardust at his disposal. At the Georgios Karaiskakis stadium tonight, lining up for Arsenal in the Champions League against Olympiakos, will be Tom Cruise. "Listen, I wouldn't like him to be under too much pressure," Wenger protested. The 18-year-old's parents have surely already seen to that.
Cruise, the reserve-team left-back, will not be the only debutant in a startlingly youthful Wenger side. Kyle Bartley, another 18-year-old, will make his bow in central defence. Bartley, though, is not named after a film star and, as such, he has been able to enjoy a lower-profile build-up. “For me,” Wenger continued, “there is only one Tom Cruise and he is the one who plays for Arsenal Football Club.” Cue belly laughs.
Wenger admitted his selection was a “gamble”. He has included 10 teenagers in his 18-man travelling party and its average age is 20.1; if it were not for the 32-year-old Mikael Silvestre, who will play as captain alongside Bartley, it would be even lower.
The youngest is Jack Wilshere, the 17-year-old prodigy, who will be granted a rare start. Wenger has sparked a January scramble for the midfielder, after admitting that he would consider a loan move for him to a rival Premier League club.
“There is a chance of that if there is an interesting opportunity,” Wenger said. “I would prefer it to be in the Premier League but top-level Championship could be interesting as well. It is important for Jack now to play. It is always sensitive, though, to give players out on loan because you need to trust the manager who wants the player.”
Arsenal have already smoothed their passage into the knockout phase of the Champions League as group winners and, as such, they have earned the right to be experimental against Olympiakos. Wenger also has one eye on Sunday’s Premier League visit to Liverpool. But it would not be difficult to predict the reaction at Standard Liege if Arsenal’s shadow team were to underperform. The Belgians hope to beat AZ Alkmaar at home and they require an Arsenal victory in Athens to enable them to leapfrog Olympiakos.
“Of course I am braced for those sort of questions,” said Wenger, “but we could have a draw as well with my normal team and that would not be a bad result. And maybe this young team will be more focused than a team that is already qualified, with the regular players. The most important thing is the quality of our game and that we are committed to try to win. After that, if Standard Liege are in that position, it is because they couldn’t win the games before.”
Wenger admitted that the confidence of his young players had “taken a knock” after the League Cup quarter-final defeat at Manchester City last Wednesday. Olympiakos represents an opportunity for the likes Aaron Ramsey, Wilshere, Fran Merida and Carlos Vela to bounce back.
There is sure to be a hothouse atmosphere inside the stadium and it will be interesting to see how Cruise and Bartley cope. Cruise is a technical player, comfortable in possession but he can be somewhat timid. The two Englishmen, both integral parts of Arsenal’s Youth Cup triumph last season, have begun to dream.
“If you are in Cruise’s boots,” Wenger said, “you do not think for one second at the start of the season that you will play in the Champions League but it is good for him and the others to get an opportunity.”
For Wenger and Arsenal’s travelling support, an intriguing 90 minutes looms.
