I am proud of the spirit we have shown. It shows we are ready for a fight. We made things difficult for ourselves with the second goal and we faced opponents who were very well organised. It was a little bit attack against defence, like you do in training. We were nearly punished because they had a chance in the second half before they scored the second goal. The pitch was very difficult for us, it looked difficult to get passing to the top speed. It was more down to character and resilience, which we have shown plenty of. Mathematically, we [have] lost two points but psychologically we have won a point because when you are 2-0 down with 20 minutes to go, you are not to unhappy to come back.
On West Brom’s second goal…
I do not want to go too much into individual criticism. What was good was the reaction the whole team has shown. It will be interesting until the end [of the season], we are ready to focus and ready to fight.
On the Premier League title race…
I felt, no matter what happened today, it will not be over. For the team, it was important not to lose. With what happened to us recently, of course, you wonder how you would recover if you lose the game today.
On the defending for West Brom’s first goal…
[I was] very disappointed. I think we were far too nervous and tentative in the first part of the game. They played with more freedom than we did. We were a bit nervy and you could see that the recent games had an impact in our mind. The team has shown great character. I am very proud of that.
On the state of the pitch…
The pitch was not at fault when we conceded the goals, we were at fault on the first and the second goal. We cannot blame the pitch for that. I just felt, with a team playing deep, the pitch slows the passing play down and makes it difficult for you. Today was more down to spirit than typical [and] technical Arsenal play.
On some frustrating mistakes…
That’s the Premier League this season. I have heard that Manchester United won in the last two minutes. It is the least-predictable season since I have been in England. So it will be down to consistency and, as I said, character.
Source: Arsenal.com on 19 Mar 11
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