Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Wenger's reaction to the Partizan Belgrade 1-3 Arsenal match

On the difficulty of the game…
Partizan gave us the game we expected - [they were] full of commitment, full of power on every break. We had a lot of the ball and created a lot of chances. However, we could not kill the game off and then we were always under threat. They came back with the penalty - afterwards we needed to keep the pace high and when we got the second goal I thought we looked comfortable.

On Lukasz Fabianski’s performance…
Fabianski had a good game, we have seen the player tonight who we see in training. He had a faultless game. I know it is in him. He got it out in the game tonight and hopefully that will give him the needed belief and confidence. I am confident he will come out as a great keeper, I have always said that. We have to keep confidence in him and he needs to gain experience from games like this. At the moment Almunia is injured, we will have to see how his injury goes but at the moment it is too early to say.

On the atmosphere in Belgrade…
The atmosphere is special here, but overall it was supportive and not aggressive - that is what we want in football. I respect that kind of support, it is fantastic for the home team.

On the decision to substitute Jack Wilshere…
He got a few knocks and I decided to be cautious with him. Especially in the first half Jack, Arshavin and Chamakh were a constant threat. I like what he did on the goal because it is quick, instant reaction.

On bouncing back after Saturday’s defeat...
For us it was important to win straight away after a big disappointment against West Brom. It puts us in a good position confidence wise. Sunday is a big, big game for us. I believe we will go there with a desire to do extremely well.

On the power cut before the game…
I thought it would be terrible to go home and not play. I encouraged UEFA when they asked if I wanted to play with one corner off, I said yes.
 
Source: Arsenal.com on 28 Sep 10

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