Arsene Wenger admits Arsenal can cope after losing defender Shkodran Mustafi for three weeks
The German was forced off after 25 minutes at the Emirates Stadium in his sides 3-1 win over Stoke
ARSENAL boss Arsene Wenger admitted this morning that although losing defender Shkodran Mustafi for three weeks is a big blow, he believes he has a squad that can cope in his absence.
The German had to be replaced after 25 minutes of Arsenal's 3-1 win over Stoke after picking up a hamstring injury.
Wenger said: "It is a challenge (to cope without him) because we had good defensive stability. We have Gabriel, we have Holding who can come in for him.
"Overall, I am confident both can do well but that's one of the tests we have. We have had many tests since the start of the season in players like Cazorla, who suddenly moved out of the team.
"We have managed to deal with that and this is another challenge."
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The 24-year old has made a bright start to his Arsenal career after joining from Valencia in a deal reported to be worth around £32million in the summer.
Arsenal have five games in 22 days, starting away to Everton on Tuesday, Manchester City away on 18 December, and they are hosting West Brom on 26 December.
He said: "They had a strong start and they are one of the dangerous teams when you look at the schedule and you think we need a strong performance to get the points.
"Koeman got them to a level where they were in the top 10 so I believe he has started very well."
"When you look at the teams around us, you can see the margin of difference between the teams has shrunk a lot," said the Frenchman.
"The way you respond in every game is absolutely vital. It's a very important period where everybody has to be absolutely focussed on our results and the way we want to play."
Wenger went on to say that he won't be fooled by Everton's poor form in recent weeks because their positive start to the season suggests they're capable of maintaining a top 10 finish.