ARSENE WENGER has called on his Arsenal side to prove they have matured into genuine title contenders by beating Chelsea tomorrow. In one of his most defiant addresses since arriving at the club 13 years ago, the Frenchman made it clear that his players can no longer hide being the tag of young pretenders and must instead show that their “moment has come”.
“This is one of our biggest tests but that is what we want,” Wenger said. “There is a period for any team to come out and show its strengths. For us, this moment has come. We are not any more a team that has to be considered to be young, we have the strengths and we want to show on Sunday that we have grown up.”
This is not the first time Wenger has spoken about Arsenal reaching a critical point in their development – only last April, before their Champions League semi-final with Manchester United, he claimed the team were “at the moment we have waited for” – but there was a definite sense of purpose to his comments yesterday as he weighed up the size of the challenge facing his men.
Chelsea will arrive at the Emirates as league leaders and eight points clear of Arsenal having won seven of their past eight matches, including a 1-0 win over Manchester United.
“They (Chelsea) were lucky in the Man United game but we know they a good side and that to beat them we will have to deliver a good performance,” Wenger said. “But I believe we have top-quality players and this is the moment for them to show that they are ready (to win the title).
“They cannot go into a game like this thinking what will happen if they don’t win. They have to go into the game with a desire to win and to fight. But I feel we are ready for the game. We are focused, prepared and the confidence is good.”
Arsenal’s task has, though, been made difficult by recent injuries. Following the loss of Robin van Persie and Nicklas Bendtner, Wenger confirmed Kieran Gibbs will be out for “at least three months” after breaking a metatarsal in his right foot and, with Gael Clichy out with a back injury, it is likely Mikael Silvestre will come in at left-back.
The Frenchman has yet to start a league game this season. William Gallas was rated as “50-50” for the visit of his former side due to a swollen right eye.
Andrey Arshavin is likely to start after substitute appearances in Arsenal’s last two matches. Wenger admitted that he demoted Arshavin for last Saturday’s defeat to Sunderland and Tuesday’s win over Standard Liege because the forward felt “depressed” following Russia’s failure to qualify for the World Cup.
“He’s 28 years old, he’s captain of the team and he knows he’ll be 33 when his next chance to play in a World Cup comes around,” Wenger said. “That was a lot for him to handle but he’s mentally okay now.”
Guardian Service
