Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is not hiding his intention ahead the club's FA Cup fifth-round clash with Hull City to see what recent signing Mohamed Elneny is made of.
With a daunting Champions League showdown with Barcelona quickly following Arsenal's match against Hull City, Wenger says he will field a typical line-up, with the exception likely to be Egyptian Elneny.
The midfielder, 23, is set for a rare chance to impress since his January signing from FC Basel.
He has yet to feature in the Premier League, and has not been used since he made his debut in the 2-0 victory over Burnley in the previous round of the FA Cup, partly because of fitness concerns.
“Elneny is fit. He is one of the players who could get a run there,” Wenger confirmed. “He’s mobile, he’s a very good player.
“He’s adapting at the moment and I think he’s there now. We’ll certainly see him against Hull. He has a chance to start.”
Otherwise, Wenger insisted he would send out a strong team in a bid to secure a morale-boosting win before Lionel Messi and company arrive in North London.
Wenger’s side are the FA Cup holders after successfully retaining the famous old trophy last season by thrashing Aston Villa 4-0 in the final.
And for a third season in a row Hull, now in the Championship, will be aiming to knock them out.
“I will, as always, play a team who has a good chance to qualify,” Wenger said. “The normal squad is involved on Saturday. It is a normal squad and we’ll play a usual strong team.”
Arsenal came back from 2-0 down to beat Hull 3-2 in the 2014 final at Wembley and then won 2-0 in last year’s third round.
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Wenger ruled out centre-back Gabriel Paulista because of a hamstring problem at a time when Laurent Koscielny is not yet fully fit.
The Frenchman could be pressed into action anyway however.
“Koscielny is doing well,” Wenger said on Thursday. “He has a test this morning and he looks positive.”
Hull manager Steve Bruce also has a need to keep his squad fresh for more testing times as the team are aiming to get back into the Premier League at the first time of asking.
Chuba Akpom and Isaac Hayden cannot play as they are on loan from Arsenal but Eldin Jakupovic, Harry Maguire, Ahmed Elmohamady, David Meyler and Adama Diomande are expected to come into the side that moved two points clear at the top of the Championship with a midweek draw against Brighton & Hove Albion.
Abel Hernandez, Hull’s 17-goal top scorer who has found the net nine times in the last 11 games, is among those expected to be rested, along with Scotland international Robert Snodgrass.
“We’ve got at least 16 games to go and a fully-fit squad to choose from, which is not something I’ve had here at this stage before as we head into a vital part of the season,” Bruce said.
“That bodes well for us in our aims for the remainder of the season but what we must do now is to maintain the high standards we’ve set in recent weeks because whatever side Arsene Wenger puts out, it will be a difficult one to beat.”
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