Wenger will now look to trim edges of Arsenal

NEWS ROUND-UP:ARSENAL'S CRESTFALLEN players were still clinging to the possibility of reviving their faltering Premier League campaign last night as the reality of elimination from Europe sank in.

For some in their number, however, future honours may have to be pursued elsewhere. Arsène Wenger has always preferred evolution to revolution but a third successive season without a trophy will demand change.

There was fury in the Frenchman's reaction to defeat at Anfield on Tuesday, his criticism of his team's naivety and "a lack of calmness in defence" reflecting the profound sense of anticlimax that would hound him back to London.

He has had faith in his squad all season only for this side, stretched to breaking point, to run out of puff at the last. Any changes will involve trimming the edges rather than rebuilding the core to this side, but the departures will still be notable.

Jens Lehmann and Gilberto Silva, hugely experienced at club and international level but marginalised at Arsenal, will leave as expected in the summer. Philippe Senderos, badly at fault when Sami Hyypia - hardly blessed with the most blistering turn of pace - eluded him at the first-half corner which provided Liverpool with a route back into Tuesday's second leg, may not have a future at this club. The Switzerland defender was also culpable in allowing Fernando Torres to turn and fire the hosts ahead. Such sloppiness at this level wrecks reputations.

Senderos had been excellent when introduced as a substitute in the first game against Milan but he has endured too many awkward afternoons in his Arsenal career, and not only against Didier Drogba. The 23-year-old may need pastures new to re-establish his credentials. So, too, may the underused full back Justin Hoyte.

"At the end of the season in every club there are a lot of changes, and the boss will decide who is going to stay and who is going to leave the club," said Emmanuel Adebayor. "There are a lot of players who are happy here, and we have all learned a lot of things this year. Defeat can be painful, but we can learn from this."

The Togo forward has become integral to key contests, with Wenger limited in his striking options. Injuries to Robin van Persie and Eduardo da Silva have exposed a lack of bite, but Adebayor would have played with those players, not instead of them.

Nicklas Bendtner is still an emerging talent, even if he believes he should be a regular; he remains highly rated by his manager but reinforcements up front are as necessary as in goal, where Manuel Almunia needs a challenger capable of competing for a first-team place now that Lehmann is on the fringe.

There will be interest from elsewhere that must be warded off. Wenger could do without the uncertainty about Mathieu Flamini's future but, with talks between player and club over a new deal still at an impasse and Juventus retaining a strong interest, he may have to plan for life without the French midfielder.

Flamini has been a revelation this term, surely Arsenal's player of the season, and his manager is desperate to have the midfield partnership with Cesc Fabregas as the hub around which his side revolve.

Should Flamini opt to stay, it is unlikely that his decision would prompt a press conference along the lines of that hosted by Thierry Henry two years ago when the striker pledged his immediate future to the club, even though the retention of the defensive midfielder would arguably be as significant.

Yet this squad must also gain greater depth if it is to sustain a challenge through to next spring. The youngsters - Theo Walcott, Denilson, Armand Traore and Abou Diaby - have shown form in flashes but consistency wins titles. Of the quartet, only Walcott's recent form would demand regular inclusion.

More flair and pace is needed on the opposite wing, and Hatem Ben Arfa, Lyon's hugely promising 20-year-old attacker, has been identified as a target, especially as Tomas Rosicky has missed so much of this year with a hamstring complaint.

Wenger is a manager who shies away from extravagant purchases and his overriding philosophy will not change. But, flush as he is with cash, he would surely consider offering up to £15 million (€18.7m) for players - Ben Arfa has been touted at £11.8 million (€14.7m), Luka Modric of Dinamo Zagreb at considerably more - to avoid a repeat of this season's late toils.

It may be time to purchase players capable of stepping straight into the senior squad, rather than talent that will emerge in the future.

"We lacked experience," conceded William Gallas, one of the older heads, after the 4-2 defeat at Liverpool. "You can't concede a penalty 30 seconds after equalising. Morale is low. Nobody expected much from us at the start of the season, and we've overachieved. But when you get this far it still hurts."

The reality is that now, having come so close, considerably more will be expected of Wenger and his Arsenal team next time around.