Arsenal failed to stay in touch with Chelsea as they allowed the blues to open a four-point advantage in the table. This is a major setback for the gunners with only 10 matches remaining.

Even more worrying is the fact that Chelsea have a lot more easier fixtures – at least on paper. Arsenal, meanwhile, have tough matches against the likes of Tottenham and Chelsea yet to come. Their progression in the FA Cup has also meant that the league match against Swansea this weekend has been postponed. This is only likely to add to the fixture congestion.

Arsenal have a lot of tough matches between now and the first week of April. Arsenal failed to score against Stoke last weekend, but it was overshadowed by the three points for Mark Hughes’ men. A penalty scored from Jon Walters was responsible for condemning Arsenal to just one win in the last eight visits to the Britannia stadium. After the match, Wenger was understandably unhappy with the outcome, but he felt that the penalty awarded was a very soft decision by the referee.

Apart from the penalty, Wenger will have his team to blame for this defeat, as they created little chance of over the course of 90 minutes. In fact, they had only two shots on target as the worrying from continued.

He told http://www.ftbllr.net “It was a tight game that we lost unfortunately on a very generous penalty. Apart from that, I felt that in the first half we had opportunities where we made the wrong decision and chose to take a shot instead of giving the ball, in two or three occasions. In the second half, when we started to really push them back in the final third, a counter-attack on the long ball got them a penalty,” said Wenger after the match.

The manager of Arsenal, Arsene Wenger, believes that his team has got enough firepower to be able to lift the Premier League trophy in the ongoing season. The Gunners made their way to the first position in the league table again yesterday by getting better of Aston Villa by 2-1.
The two guys who struck for Arsenal against Villa were Olivier Giroud and Jack Wilshere.

Speaking in the post match press conference, Wenger said, “It’s an important fixture for us and we needed to start well which we did. We showed a lot of control for the first 45 minutes and then, when we came back after the half time break, we were just looking to fight it out.”

“Our deep players did their job perfectly. It had got a bit tight at the end, but, they showed good skills and made sure that we didn’t lose our advantage.”

Arsenal had taken the lead of 2-0 in the first half of the match which frustrated the huge number of home fans out there. They booed their players when they were coming off for the half time break and that seemed to have woken up the Villa players a bit because they looked to be playing with much more determination in the second half. They got the reward for that too.

With about 15 minutes remaining, Christian Benteke found the net to reduce the visitors’ lead to 1-2. That made the proceedings pretty exciting. But, a solid Arsenal defence didn’t let anything dramatic happen after that. There were no more goals in the match and three points went to Arsenal.
Arsenal’s next match is a home game which will take place in 5 days’ time. They will be taking on Fulham in that game.

The German defender Per Mertesacker has been in sensation form not only for his club but also for his country as his defensive partnership with Laurent Koscielny is one the important factors that have allowed Arsenal to propel their superb start of this season.
Due to his display of impressive performances Arsene Wenger confirmed his intentions on extending the contract of Per Mertesacker.
Wenger told reporters: “We are in the process of extending Mertesacker’s contract. “He has one-and-a-half years left – there is plenty of time.”
Per Mertesacker initially struggled to show his worth in Arsenal and in the Premier League when he was signed back in 2010 from Werder Bremen but the 29 years old defender now plays a pivotal role in the heart of Arsenal’s defence becoming the 1st choice centre-back for Wenger.
Schalke’s Julian Draxler is a major target of not only Manchester United and Chelsea but also Arsenal although it seems more likely that the 20 years old midfielder will be joining Arsene Wenger’s squad after speaking to the media about his future.
“I have always said English teams are very big clubs and Arsenal is of course one of them,” the attacking midfielder is quoted as saying by the Daily Mirror.

“Of course I sometimes speak to Mesut or Per Mertesacker about the team, about the club, and they always have good words and they tell me nice things.

“You never know what happens in the summer but Arsenal is a very, very nice team. They always have very young players, they play attractive football and that’s what I like.”
He also confirmed that he will stay with Schalke 04 and not make a move to any other club during the January as he still needs to improve before making a switch to another league.

German football player Sami Khedira has dropped the greatest suggestion yet that he would climb up at the opportunity of joining his German mate Mesut Ozil at English Premier League club Arsenal. Previous month, the Madrid midfield player was related with a move the London club.

There were reports in the media that Sami Khedira was quite open with the idea for a move to Arsenal. The Real player has again lay his admiration for the London club. He stated that Mesut’s inclusion in Arsenal has turned them into the best team in the EPL and more importantly they are also in race for the title.

According to reports, he recently stated that Arsenal had a strong team, but Mesut Ozil makes them the best team in England. He added that Ozil could be the footballer which makes things happen for them and win them the championship. Ozil is a genius on the field, there is no other way to describe him. When he left Madrid, the players were a bit disappointed as he is the best in his position in the world.

Sami Khedira told that he understands the decision as a friend as well as a player. Ozil is already playing stunning football for the English club, but he is yet to get used to the league yet. He added that there is a huge German influence in Arsenal now with players like Mesut Ozil, Lukas Podolski and Per Metersacker. Khedira told that he is missing Ozil at the club.

Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers has said that he does not see the reason why striker Luis Suarez should even think about joining Arsenal. The London outfit recently made an offer in excess of £ 40 million for the player, which was once again rejected by Liverpool.

This was the second offer made by Arsenal for the 26-year-old Uruguay striker, who has been one of the best players in the Premier league over the last two seasons. He joined Liverpool for around £ 25 million in 2011. Rodgers has said that they value Suarez close to £ 55 million and Arsenal should forget about signing him if they do not match this valuation.

Even then, he does not see the reason why Suarez should be interesting joining Arsenal because he thinks Liverpool is a bigger club than the London outfit. Even though Arsenal have the opportunity to offer Suarez Champions League football, he thinks that this must not be the only motivation for the 26-year-old. Liverpool have been spending a lot of money under Brendan Rodgers in hope of getting back into the top four. They have once again brought in several players in the last few weeks, but they still finished in the eighth position last season.
Suarez has stated that he is flattered to be linked with a club like Arsenal.

“Would it be a mistake for Luis to leave Liverpool? Yes, 100 per cent. I know what we are trying to build and grow here, so why would you swap Liverpool to go to Arsenal? I am not sure that it adds up to be honest. Don’t get me wrong, Arsenal has a wonderful history in its own right, but Liverpool is one of the biggest clubs in the world. I am sure Luis will have seen the sheer size and status of the club here,” said Rodgers.

Arsene Wenger has come under intense pressure this reason for the failure to win a trophy for yet another season. Arsenal have gone eight seasons with the trophy and they will be entering into the ninth in a few months time. The last major trophy won their first win was back in 2005.

Even though Wenger has been saying consistently in recent years that finishing in the top four is a great achievement for Arsenal, he has finally admitted that it may not be the case. Wenger has said that finishing in the top four amidst competition that has huge financial resources is a greater achievement.

However, he has finally admitted that the club needs to win trophies in order to attract the top players. Arsenal finally spent some money in the summer by bringing players like Lukas Podolski, Oliver Giroud, and Santi Cazorla. However, the efforts have not been fruitful because the team once again struggling in the league. In the past, Arsenal used to comfortably finish in the top four, but they are now facing stiff competition due to the emergence of clubs like Manchester City and Tottenham. Arsenal have been playing in the Champions League group stages consecutively for the past 16 seasons.

“Finishing fourth is the minimum required. Is it enough? No. We want more, but this year Manchester United were above everybody else. We have rebuilt the team and since January we have done very well,” said Wenger, whose team have the opportunity to edge closer towards a top four finish this season with a win over Wigan in the midweek action. The team’s final match of the season will be against Newcastle United. Meanwhile, Tottenham play against Sunderland on the final day of the season. Arsenal’s destiny is in their own hands for the two matches.

After almost being knocked out of the FA Cup in the fourth round itself, the Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has said that he is pleased to see his players progress to the next round.

Arsenal were facing the Championship team Brighton and Hove Albion on the fourth round. This was an extremely difficult match for the club given that they were playing it away from home, and Brighton were especially confident after having only unbeaten Premier league club Newcastle United. Realistically, Arsenal can hope to win the first trophy since 2005 in the form of the FA Cup only.

However, the Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger made some important changes to the team which could have easily backfired in hindsight. Players like Jack Wilshere, Theo Walcott, and Santi Cazorla were left on the bench by the manager, who decided to offer them some rest ahead of the busy fixture list starting next week. The plan could have easily backfired because Brighton managed to take the lead twice in the match only to concede to goals from Oliver Giroud. The young striker Theo Walcott, who only recently signed a new contract with the club, came off the bench and scored the winner late on to save the blushes of the manager.

“Of course this is the gamble you take and it can backfire. You have to rotate because of the number of games you play and you know if it doesn’t work you will be accused of making the wrong decision We didn’t play Jack Wilshere just to protect his ankle a bit but you can’t play the same 11 every week. We have got a game against Liverpool on Wednesday then we play Stoke. In the end we showed the quality we needed to get through,” said Wenger, who was criticised by some fans during the match.

The Real Madrid manager José Mourinho has said that he certainly envies the position of the Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, who has been at the club for more than 15 seasons. Mourinho has already managed four major clubs in the last 10 years.

Even though he has been hugely successful during this period by lifting more than 20 trophies, Mourinho has said that he would love to have the stability and longevity of Arsene Wenger. Despite not winning a major trophy for more than seven seasons, Wenger has not been sacked by his club.

Mourinho, though, thinks that he certainly needs the pressure of having to win trophies in order to perform. The pressure does not come from the outside, then he will himself put the pressure on him to deliver the trophies. Hence, he cannot imagine working in a situation like Wenger when he is given a lot of time to build the club.

Wenger has managed to change the philosophy of Arsenal in the last seven seasons. They have been playing an attractive style of football, although they do not have any trophies to show for their efforts. Wenger is unlikely to lift the Premier league and the Champions League title this season, with the only possibility of lifting the trophy remaining in the FA Cup.

“I would love to have (Wenger’s) stability at a club. But at the same time I think for my mentality I also need the pressure to succeed – and if no-one imposes that pressure on me then I would impose that pressure on myself. The pressure to win things. Yes it’s possible to be one or two seasons building for the future and not being at the level to win things, but no longer, because my mentality is I always need the pressure of winning things,” said Mourinho.

Arsenal have been dealt a major blow in their hopes of qualifying for the Champions League next season after the French defender Laurent Koscielny has been ruled out for an important period of the season.

Laurent Koscielny will be missing the next three weeks of the season, which will be extremely crucial to the chances of Arsenal finishing above the likes of Tottenham and Everton in the league. Arsenal were recently involved in the 1-1 draw with Everton, which once again left their hopes of finishing in the top four in tatters. Their main competitor – Tottenham – managed a 2-1 win over Liverpool during the same period.

Arsenal have been suffering from huge dip in form over the last couple of weeks, which has left them in the seventh position behind Tottenham and Everton. Following the results in the midweek action, Tottenham a two-point advantage over their North London rivals. The out of contract winger Theo Walcott managed to score after just 52 seconds to give them the lead in the match. However, a late goal by the midfielder Marouane Fellaini helped Everton take a point from the match. This has also kept their league position above Arsenal. Despite their two more dropped points, Wenger had little to complain from the match and the result.

“He has a groin strain. That’s usually three weeks. We had a good start and after that I felt Everton came back. Their direct game was always a threat with Fellaini. We have regrets on the goal we conceded but overall, I believe that 1-1 is a fair result. It was a game of remarkable intensity. We needed to show great spirit today to get away with a point because they were up for it,” said Wenger. Arsenal have just two wins in the last five matches.

It would be fair to say that Johan Djourou has struggled to make an impact since first making his debut for the club in 2004 and many were expecting him to leave the Emirates Stadium in the last transfer window. However, Arsene Wenger blocked the move and has now stated that the 25-year-old does have a future with the Gunners.

Djourou has been at the club for his whole career, having first joined from Étoile Carouge at just 15-years-old. However, even though he has also established himself in the Switzerland national team, opportunities at Arsenal have always been hard to come by. In fact, despite spending eight years with the club, he has managed just 86 appearances.

There was intense speculation in the last transfer window that Djourou was on the radar of Italian outfit Napoli. However, according to Wenger, he blocked any move as he “loves him as a player”. Speaking to The Sun, the Frenchman said, “I didn’t let Djourou leave as I love him as a player, and he loves the club.”

Despite Wenger’s so-called love for the player, Djourou has still not managed to force his way into the first team. He is still to make an appearance for the Gunners this term, having been an unused substitute on two occasions. It already looks like he is well down the pecking order amongst the club’s defenders, with the likes of Laurent Koscielny, Per Mertesacker and Thomas Vermaelen all being preferred options. Moreover, considering the fact that Arsenal are the only outfit in the division yet to concede a goal, it looks very unlikely for him to be selected any time soon. Nevertheless, the player’s international career does not seem to be affected from this lack of domestic football, with Djourou appearing for Switzerland in their recent game against Slovenia.