English Premier League: Wenger calls for unity after Swansea shock
Fans revolt after Arsenal go down to Swans 2-0 at home.
LONDON:
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has told the club’s unhappy fans he will bring happier times back to the club after Swansea City beat them 2-0 at the Emirates Stadium.
Saturday’s defeat followed a protest outside the ground by hundreds of supporters who are angry with the board of directors for constantly selling star players to Champions League rivals.
Arsenal were also booed off at the final whistle, which confirmed they had dropped to 10th place in the Premier League – three places below Swansea – but Wenger was confident he could steer the club out of its current predicament.
“We are in this job to turn it round and I am confident we will because of the quality of the players and the spirit we have in the team, so it is a good moment to stick together,” said Wenger.
And when the Frenchman was asked whether he felt his lengthy spell at the club might be coming to an end, he insisted he would still be in charge at the end of the campaign.
“You make your assessment at the end of the season, like I said many times. I know at the moment there is a lot of unrest everywhere, but I believe it’s a good opportunity to show we are a strong club.”
Ferguson demands end to United rescue acts
Meanwhile, Alex Ferguson insists his Manchester United side cannot continue mounting ‘rescue jobs’ if they want to wrestle back their Premier League title.
United have fallen behind seven times this season before going on to record wins with their latest comeback victory being a 4-3 win at Reading on Saturday. With the Manchester derby at the Etihad Stadium looming on Sunday, Ferguson will know his side can ill-afford a repeat defensive performance.
“It was unbelievable,” said Ferguson. “There was some real bad defending in the first half. The worst we have been this season, absolutely the worst. We have to sort that out. We got battered and deserved to be but we are getting goals to rescue us all the time. In the first-half I said to myself it would be a miracle if we win this one the way we were defending. I’m just glad we did win it.”
In other matches, champions Manchester City were held at home by Everton 1-1 while Liverpool registered their fourth win of the season against Southampton 1-0.
Tottenham pulled off an impressive 3-0 win against city rivals Fulham as QPR and Aston Villa played out a 1-1 draw. Stoke upset high-flying West Brom at home with a 1-0 win.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 3rd, 2012.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has told the club’s unhappy fans he will bring happier times back to the club after Swansea City beat them 2-0 at the Emirates Stadium.
Saturday’s defeat followed a protest outside the ground by hundreds of supporters who are angry with the board of directors for constantly selling star players to Champions League rivals.
Arsenal were also booed off at the final whistle, which confirmed they had dropped to 10th place in the Premier League – three places below Swansea – but Wenger was confident he could steer the club out of its current predicament.
“We are in this job to turn it round and I am confident we will because of the quality of the players and the spirit we have in the team, so it is a good moment to stick together,” said Wenger.
And when the Frenchman was asked whether he felt his lengthy spell at the club might be coming to an end, he insisted he would still be in charge at the end of the campaign.
“You make your assessment at the end of the season, like I said many times. I know at the moment there is a lot of unrest everywhere, but I believe it’s a good opportunity to show we are a strong club.”
Ferguson demands end to United rescue acts
Meanwhile, Alex Ferguson insists his Manchester United side cannot continue mounting ‘rescue jobs’ if they want to wrestle back their Premier League title.
United have fallen behind seven times this season before going on to record wins with their latest comeback victory being a 4-3 win at Reading on Saturday. With the Manchester derby at the Etihad Stadium looming on Sunday, Ferguson will know his side can ill-afford a repeat defensive performance.
“It was unbelievable,” said Ferguson. “There was some real bad defending in the first half. The worst we have been this season, absolutely the worst. We have to sort that out. We got battered and deserved to be but we are getting goals to rescue us all the time. In the first-half I said to myself it would be a miracle if we win this one the way we were defending. I’m just glad we did win it.”
In other matches, champions Manchester City were held at home by Everton 1-1 while Liverpool registered their fourth win of the season against Southampton 1-0.
Tottenham pulled off an impressive 3-0 win against city rivals Fulham as QPR and Aston Villa played out a 1-1 draw. Stoke upset high-flying West Brom at home with a 1-0 win.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 3rd, 2012.