Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has said that the only team to really beat Arsenal this season has been Liverpool despite a 6-3 loss to Manchester City and a 6-0 loss to Chelsea.
Despite being heavily beaten by all the clubs around Arsenal battling for the title the Gunners boss claims that the only match where he could not offer up excuses with the 5-1 loss to Liverpool at Anfield.
Wenger told the Daily Mirror: “The only game for me where we were really beaten was at Liverpool. The rest is a bit more coincidence going negatively together.
“At Chelsea the game was over after ten minutes. At Liverpool were outplayed on the day and there’s not a lot to say.
“One week later we beat Liverpool (in the FA Cup) and no-one says there is a gap there between the two teams.
“You have to accept that it is not always as simple as that in the game. You play ten times the same team and every time it’s a different game.”
Wenger saw Kieran Gibbs sent off by mistake against Chelsea early in the match and maintains Arsenal were still in the match despite the scoreline.
Sky pundit Paul Scholes had a go at Arsenal following their 2-2 draw with Swansea claiming that they did not have enough big players in the team and that Wilshere was not making the progress he should be as the team lacked any leaders.
“That is unfair. I have leaders in my team,” said Wenger. “It’s always exactly the same. When you lose games people say you have no leaders.
“The other night we conceded a goal when we have in midfield Kallstrom who is over 30 with over 100 caps, Arteta is over 30, Flamini is 30. We had plenty of experience in midfield and you can still concede goals.
“Jack Wilshere is an exceptional player who has been handicapped by many injuries. Once Jack is back and consistently on the pitch, he will prove everybody wrong about that because he is an exceptional player – and Scholes knows that as well.
“We changed our style. We lost players like Vieira and Petit and we didn’t find them anymore. Since Vieira left here the whole of England has looked for the next Vieira and nobody found him.
“You could make the same reproach to Barcelona. The coincidence was that we had Fabregas. Do we not play him because he not as tall as Vieira? Do we not play Wilshere?
“You have to take the players we have. One who gives us a very strong physical element in our midfield is Ramsey and we lost him at the wrong period of the season.”
Wenger also fired back when asked if he was starting to question himself now the team has started to slide backwards: “If you have the curiosity to question yourself and read the newspapers after the first game against Aston Villa you would say we are beyond all your expectations.
“Look, our ambitions for the season – we are in a position where we can still fight for the top, we are in the semi-final of the FA Cup, we went out of the Champions League against Bayern Munich with ten men.
“We have been consistent all season so I don’t think you can say our season up to now is a failure.”
