Arsenal manager, Mikel Arteta, has explained the absence of Declan Rice and Martin Zubimendi from the matchday squad to face Mansfield Town in the FA Cup fifth round on Saturday.
The two midfielders are missing for the game against the League One side.
Arteta has made a total of nine changes from the team that beat Brighton 1-0 in the Premier League in midweek.
Cristhian Mosquera and Gabriel Martinelli are the only players to keep their places in the starting XI, while teenagers Max Dowman and Marli Salmon both start.
āWe know the difficulty of the challenge, itās always really tough to win and earn the right to go through to the next round and we are very, very aware of that,ā Arteta replied, when asked about the changes.
FA Cup: Arteta reveals why he dropped Declan Rice, Zubimendi against Manfield
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