SOCCER:ARSENE WENGER says Manchester United have been "a bit lucky until now" to remain undefeated in the Premier League, but he feels they will not begin to think about emulating Arsenal's Invincibles until they enter the final five games of the season.

The Arsenal manager, who counts his team’s unbeaten title success in 2003-04 as his finest achievement, said it is impossible to predict whether United would follow suit this time out. But what he did know was if Alex Ferguson’s men stood a chance to do so in the final stretch, his team would be in the position to stop them.

One or two of Wenger’s Invincibles have said in private they would hate it if United were to go unbeaten, as it would take some of the shine off what they achieved. Arsenal entertain United at the Emirates on April 30th, with four matches of the season remaining.

“Do you ask me can they still do it?” Wenger said ahead of his side’s clash with Wigan today. “Certainly, because they have not been beaten yet. Have they been a bit lucky until now? Certainly, but we’ll see. I don’t know more than you. You really think about winning the championship but with five games to go, you think about: ‘Oh, we can add something to that’. That’s what happened with us. But you don’t think about that with 16 games to go.”

United have 17 games to go and their record after the first 21 is similar to Arsenal’s from 2003-04; United have nine draws while Arsenal had seven. Moreover, there has been the element of good fortune that Wenger knows, from experience, is crucial.

United have struggled at times away from home and their 2-1 win at West Bromwich Albion, when Peter Odemwingie missed a 63rd-minute penalty with the score at 1-1, could easily have gone the other way. Arsenal might have lost in September 2003 at Old Trafford but the United striker Ruud van Nistelrooy missed an injury-time penalty in the 0-0 draw.

“At West Brom, for example,” Wenger said, when asked where he felt United had been particularly lucky this season.

“But overall, I’m more concerned by our own performance. What is important is to beat Man United and we will only have the chance, with the run that they are on, if we do exceptionally well until the end of the season.

“So I focus more on that, knowing that they have a difficult schedule as well. If they have five games to go and they are still unbeaten, come back to me and I’ll say ‘Now, they can do it’.”

Wenger has warned that his Arsenal players fully intend to “go for it” as they target an unprecedented quadruple.

Arsenal host Wigan today looking to maintain the momentum from a 3-1 midweek FA Cup third-round replay win at Leeds, which followed the 3-0 drubbing of bottom club West Ham.

Next week Arsenal, who last won a trophy in 2005, take on Championship strugglers Ipswich in the second leg of their League Cup semi-final looking to overturn a 1-0 deficit and stay on course for Wembley, while a place in the last 16 of the FA Cup is there for the taking against League One Huddersfield.

The small matter of a Champions League showdown with Barcelona is also fast approaching, and Wenger knows his men must continue to produce top form as they battle for success on four fronts.

Arsenal now have four home matches in succession and Wenger will not accept any more below-par performances at the Emirates Stadium.

“We know our home form can make a huge impact on our success and that’s why if it is Wigan or anybody else at home we want the three points,” he said. “Everybody has learned since the start of the season there is no room for taking anybody lightly because everybody can beat everybody in this league.”

Arsenal are short of cover at the centre of defence, but Wenger refused to be drawn on whether he was set for a €12 million swoop for Bolton’s England international Gary Cahill.

“At the moment, I cannot come out with any name,” he said. “I think Gary Cahill is a very good player, but I cannot tell you more. We like to keep our transfer negotiations always very secret, because it puts more pressure on when you go public so you would understand we don’t want to speak publicly about that.”