Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has challenged his players to prove they have learned from last season’s “accident” when they take on Premier League leaders Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.
Wenger has never managed to get the better of Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho in his 11 previous meetings with the Portuguese coach and the Gunners’ record against the Blues has been poor in recent years, with his side’s 6-0 hammering against their London rivals last season one of the low points of Wenger’s 18-year reign as Arsenal manager.
While he would not have wished to have been reminded of that chastening experience in west London last March ahead of his return to Stamford Bridge, Wenger is hoping the pain of that defeat inspires his team to end Chelsea’s unbeaten start to the season this weekend.
“It was not a bad day, it was a horrendous day for us, we never forget that day,” stated Wenger. “We have an opportunity to put that right. We of course are hugely determined to put that right on Sunday and I’m confident we will take the chance to do it.
“It was an accident [last season]. We were 2-0 down after 10 minutes, down to 10 men. In a position where you are down to 10 men and have to attack, you are always exposed to a counter attack. It was a very bad memory, but football is not made of history, football is made of performances. It is the next game that counts.
“If football was just about repetition, we would not play on Sunday because we would know the result before. Football is interesting because it is not predictable. It is all about the performance on the day.
“We want to go to Chelsea to win and the fact that they are six points ahead of us makes us all the more determined. They have started very well, but we have a big opportunity. It is the two unbeaten sides in the Premier League, but they have been more efficient in finishing their games than we have.
“We have maybe a little bit more of a difficult run than they had because we play Everton, Man City and Tottenham at home in our games. It is a vital game for us to stay in the race, of course.”
Wenger’s failure to get the better of Mourinho in any of his previous meetings and the animosity that has long existed between the two managers will be a fascinating side-show to the events on the pitch this weekend.
Yet Wenger is doing his best to play down his rivalry with Mourinho, as he offered a suggestion that the Chelsea boss may be more interesting in fuelling his own profile by creating a battle.
“One of the privileges of age is that your ego is not so important,” he added. “I work for my club that I love, my team that I love. I want our fans to be happy after the game. That has nothing to do with individual confrontation with anyone [Mourinho]. That is about team performance, work rate and togetherness. That is what matters to me on Sunday.
“The record against Mourinho is because they always had good teams. In the last six or seven years they had good teams and that is always important. It is not a game between two managers, it is a game between two teams and two clubs. I believe that we have a good opportunity to change history and I am confident we will do it.
“Chelsea have good defensive records with and without Mourinho. Their defence led by John Terry had good records. Let’s not forget Chelsea won the Champions League on good defensive stability.”
“You have to find a way to nullify their strength without forgetting your strengths. At the end of the game, in a game like that, our performance will be vital. It is very important we focus and concentrate on us having great determination and a great desire to have a great performance. Focus on our work rate and the way we want to play.”
Source: ESPN FC
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