‘Now finish the job’, Wenger tells Arsenal
‘Not an easy situation’
LONDON, Nov 27, (AFP): Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger urged his players to “finish the job” after they moved to within sight of the Champions League knockout phase with a 2-0 win over Marseille.
Jack Wilshere scored both goals at the Emirates Stadium on Tuesday to leave Wenger’s side with 12 points from five games in Group F, but they are not yet assured of a berth in the last 16.
They need to avoid defeat at Napoli in their final group game to be sure of going through, although the qualifying permutations mean that they could still progress even if they lose at Stadio San Paolo on Dec 11.
“It’s unbelievable (not to have qualified with 12 points), but it’s the reality and we have to finish the job,” Wenger said.
“It is not an easy situation. It’s a tricky situation because you could think, ‘OK, (the objective is) just not to lose big (to Napoli),’ but I think that would be a mistake from ourselves.
“It is to put in our head to go there, play in a positive way and try to win the game, because everything else would be a dangerous gamble.”
Wilshere opened the scoring after only 27 seconds — the fastest goal in the Champions League this season — and completed his brace in the 65th minute when he converted a low cross from Mesut Ozil.
The England midfielder had previously scored only twice this season, and he said he was keen to add more goals to his repertoire.
Asked what his goals target for the campaign was, Wilshere told ITV: “At the start of the season I said 10 goals. I’ve never scored four in a season (before), so we’ll see. I’m feeling good at the moment.”
Wenger praised the coolness of Wilshere’s opening goal, which saw him cut inside a defender before curling a shot home, and suggested he should take inspiration from team-mate Aaron Ramsey, who has already found the net 11 times for the Premier League leaders this term.
“I like his first goal, because before he rushed a little bit,” Wenger said.
“He’s starting to think, ‘What Ramsey can do, I can do as well.’ He’s calm in front of goal; especially the first goal shows that.”
Wenger was, however, critical of Ozil, who saw a 37th-minute penalty saved by Marseille goalkeeper Steve Mandanda following a truncated run-up.
“Everybody can miss a penalty, but I think his run on to the ball was a bit short. But it’s the way he takes them,” the Frenchman said.
He also expressed annoyance with midfielder Mathieu Flamini for cutting the sleeves on his shirt.
It is an Arsenal tradition that players take to the field wearing shirts with sleeves of the same length, and with Flamini’s teammates having all-sported long-sleeve shirts, Wenger pledged to speak to the French midfielder about the matter.