Gunners boss Wenger set for a nervy finale
ARSENE WENGER admits he is more fearful than ever that Arsenal will miss out on the Champions League.
Even though the Gunners boss claims the club no longer need the additional finances provided by finishing in the Premier League’s top four, playing in the Champions League is still desirable from a sporting aspect – especially when it comes to attracting big-name signings.
Arsenal go into their final league game of the season today in fifth, knowing even a victory at home to Everton may not be enough to usurp Manchester City or Liverpool, both of whom have Champions League qualification in their own hands.
For the first time since 2006, Arsenal head into the final weekend of the campaign as outsiders to finish in the top four.
That year it was fierce local rivals Tottenham who occupied fourth spot heading into the last 90 minutes, only needing to match Arsenal’s result to stay there.
But, while Arsenal saw off Wigan, the Spurs squad was hit by a sickness bug and were beaten at West Ham.
Wenger had delivered again – but even if he had not, another bite of the cherry would come later as they faced Barcelona in the Champions League final.
While they lost to the Catalan giants, having two opportunities to seal another season in Europe’s elite club competition is not something Arsenal can fall back on this time around.
Wenger said: “In 2006, you are playing Barcelona in the final and you still thought you had a chance to win the Champions League and to be in it again.
“So the fear not to be in it was less big. This time, we are less likely to be in it, but we can still manage it only by focusing on what we think is important, which is to win the game.
“We want to play in the best competition. We have a possibility to do it and if it’s a small one we have to be professional and do it to the end.”
Wenger’s future is still up in the air as he is still yet to publicly announce if he will sign a new contract to remain in the job beyond next weekend’s FA Cup Final against Chelsea.
Add to that a new boardroom power struggle, with minority shareholder Alisher Usmanov making a £1billion bid to purchase Stan Kroenke’s 67% of the club, and several aspects of Arsenal’s future are unclear.
But qualifying for the Champions League is the immediate priority and Wenger added: “We want to play in the best competition but, financially, it’s not a disaster.”