Wenger - Changes are rotation not punishment

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If Arsène Wenger changes his team for Tuesday night's game against Porto, his motive will be rotation not punishment.

The Arsenal manager suggested he would tinker with his line-up afterSaturday's shock defeat against Hull City and the issue cropped up athis pre-match press conference on Monday. However, Wenger made it veryclear that any omitted players should not been seen as scapegoats.

"Punishment? No, you know sometimes you make changes because youconsider the other team, you consider the balance of your team,sometimes because one player is not at his best," insisted Wenger.

"If a player or two do not play tomorrow it is not a punishment, itis just because of a rotation in the side. You cannot play every singlegame with the same 11 players."

Criticism of the team was inevitable after Arsenal let a one-goallead slip at the weekend and conceded a headed goal from a corner forthe third time this season, and Wenger was offered plenty of'solutions' on Monday.

Some suggested Carlos Vela, the Carling Cup hat-trick hero, could start against Porto, others raised the possibility of Mikael Silvestre adding experience to the back four and one journalist asked whether Kolo Tourecould be moved into midfield. The Arsenal manager was quick to defendhis defence, refused to be drawn on Vela's inclusion and ruled out anew role for Toure.

"I believe the goal we conceded where we are less guilty is thecorner against Hull because it was a well-taken chance," he said."[Hull's Daniel] Cousin is very tall and very good in the air. It was aperfect header and that can happen to anybody.

"You gain experience through the games. At the back is where we haveexperience because you cannot say with Clichy and Sagna and Kolo andGallas that we lack experience. Will Kolo play in midfield? No, not atall.

"As for Vela, it's difficult to go into any individual case. I believe Carlos Velais a player of the squad and the whole squad will be used over theseason. You cannot go from one team to the other and change 11 playersbecause we just lost one game.

"I believe what is happening is that players have shown qualitybehind the first team and that is very interesting for the future ofthe Club."