Football
ESPN staff 8y

Arsene Wenger: Premier League title not decided against Man City

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has played down the significance of Monday's match with Manchester City, saying the Premier League title will not be decided.

Arsenal host City a point above their opponents in second, as Leicester top the table with a two-point advantage over the Gunners.

Wenger is wary of Manuel Pellegrini's side, which could include star players Sergio Aguero and David Silva, but stressed there is still a long way to go in the title race.

"No, we are in December, we are not fighting for the Premier League on Monday night," he said in the Daily Mirror.

"What you look at is of course to nullify the individual quality they have offensively, that will be vital for us to find a good balance between defending well as a team and expressing our way to go forward. But you cannot ignore the individual quality they have up front.

"If we win, it will boost our chances of course to go to the top. It is a massive game and when you play at home you want to win because we ambitious and we feel over Christmas we play many home games and our strength and we have the chance to come out in a strong position after Christmas.

"It will be a very tight game because if you look at the numbers since the start of the season, offensively and defensively the numbers are very close.

"Manchester City has huge individual potential with Silva coming back, Aguero coming back and so we will need a top, top level team performance."

Wenger's team won 2-0 at the Etihad last season, while their home game ended 2-2, with the away result in Manchester seen as a landmark performance by the Gunners.

"It was a needed step for our team. It was not enough, but it was the first step which was certainly vital to strengthen the belief of our team," Wenger added.

"We go into games like Monday night with greater confidence. When you have never done it, people can tell you 'you are good enough, your are good enough' but when you have done it, you know you can do it and that strengthens you. Of course it is important."

^ Back to Top ^