Arsene Wenger admits he is happy with his rotation policy after Arsenal booked their place in the Europa League knockout stages thanks to a 0-0 draw against Red Star Belgrade on Thursday.
The Frenchman made 11 changes to his starting line-up for the match at the Emirates Stadium, with youngsters such as goalkeeper Matt Macey, Reiss Nelson, Joe Willock and Ainsley Maitland-Niles all getting a chance to impress.
Although the Gunners failed to secure a victory for the first time during the group stage, the point was still enough to seal their place in the knockout stages and Wenger believes the contest proved to be another good experience for his young players.
“In the end, we didn’t see goals and people aren’t used to not seeing goals here,” Wenger said.
“It’s frustrating when you don’t score, but we have understanding with many young players in the team. That’s part of the learning process, to play these types of games.”
The 68-year-old insists he will continue with his rotation policy for the time being, particularly as the Gunners have picked up 10 points from a possible 12 in Europe so far this season.
He added: “You could see tonight was a very intense game. With the number of games we play, I’ll continue [with the rotation policy] at the moment.”
Arsenal have not won a major European trophy since claiming the Cup Winners’ Cup in 1994, but they are priced at 7.00 to secure Europa League glory come the end of the season.
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