Trying to work out Arsene Wenger’s starting eleven for any given game is a challenge that even those from Mensa would fail.

Just when you think you’ve got him figured out, he throws you a curve ball, like starting Yaya Sanogo against Bayern Munich, and you’re left wondering if you’ll ever be able to get it right.

If you think you’re stupid then we have some reassuring news for you – the manager himself often isn’t sure of his starting lineup until the morning of the game.

If he doesn’t know, then how are we supposed to work it out?

“I always have eight or nine players of my team in my head the day before the game, but there’s always a doubt on one or two,” the manager told Arsenal magazine.

“You try to make it as scientific as much as you can, but it’s intuitive as well because you have to think if the balance of the team is right or if one player was a bit better in the last training session.

“When two players are together in your mind, competing for one position, every single detail can go for one of them – experience, confidence under pressure – everything can make a difference.

“I always have a final chat with the medical people to make my mind up and make sure that everybody is alright. I do that on the morning of every game. Then I make my decision.”

His task has been made somewhat easier this season by virtue of the huge numbers of injuries the club have suffered, but as another three returned from the treatment room, Wenger seems set for an even bigger headache than usual before the Liverpool game.

As for us poor souls trying to guess who he’ll pick?

Maybe we should just give it up and let Wenger’s selection live on as one of life’s little mysteries that will never be fully understood.