Wenger: Subs rule has helped Carling Cup kids



Arsène Wenger believes that the new rule for Premier League substitutes will help Arsenal's Carling Cup kids tonight.

Before this season clubs could name five replacements for top-flight fixtures but that allocation was increased to seven before the start of the new campaign. The rule change has allowed Wenger to draft in the likes of Jack Wilshere, Mark Randall and Kieran Gibbs for Premier League games.

All three are in contention to start tonight's Third-Round tie against Sheffield United and Wenger believes that their recent exposure to the first-team scene will help his young Gunners when they walk out at Emirates Stadium.

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"The increase in substitutions is an advantage because they start to taste and to smell the importance of the games and the pressure in the dressing rooms," said Wenger. "They see how the experienced players handle it.

"If the manager rotates the subs he must be careful not to make professional subs. They do not sit there every week and do not practice anymore and that’s why it's important not to always take the same players."