Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has challenged his youngsters to earn a place in their Carling Cup squad.

“Of course [the race is on]” he told Arsenal.com. “We have given out a few players on loan but we have a big squad and if you look at the number of players who did not play [against Celtic] then I believe we will have a competitive squad in the Carling Cup.

“Somebody in France told me that [against Celtic] our average age was 23.9 years old. If you look at the players who were on the pitch that night they all played in the Carling Cup – Bendtner, Song, Denilson, Fabregas even Clichy.

“They all started in the Carling Cup. That shows you how important it is to go through this stage.”