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EPL: Wenger Expects Tough Cardiff Test For Arsenal

Arsenal Manager, Arsene Wenger has admitted that his side will not find it easy to strengthen their grip at the top of the Premier League … Continue reading EPL: Wenger Expects Tough Cardiff Test For Arsenal


Arsenal Manager, Arsene Wenger has admitted that his side will not find it easy to strengthen their grip at the top of the Premier League when they travel to Cardiff on Saturday, November 30.

The London club have enjoyed a strong start to the season, and can extend the gap at the top to 7 points for 24 hours at least, with their main rivals not in action until Sunday.

But Wenger knows that a visit to South Wales won’t be particularly easy, as Cardiff have already beaten Manchester City at home this season, and last weekend produced a late rally to snatch a 2-2 draw against Manchester United.

“They look to have a good solidarity, good togetherness, fantastic support as well, and they are all on the same wavelength in the team, very efficient at home on set pieces especially,” he told reporters at Arsenal’s training ground on Friday.

“Even on Sunday when they were 2-1 down against Man Utd, many teams could have thought ‘Ok, it’s Man Utd, we won’t come back’. You have the feeling that they don’t give up. You could feel that they could come back, so they have that special attitude and belief in the side that makes them dangerous.”

Having been criticised for his transfer dealings in the summer, Wenger believes his team are benefitting from a settled squad. In the previous two summers Wenger lost his two players – Cesc Fabregas to Barcelona, and Robin van Persie to Manchester United, but there were no big departures this time around, with the added bonus that Arsenal brought in Mesut Ozil.

“We lost a few great players, one was an exceptional striker and one was an exceptional midfielder,” said Wenger.

“It hurt us twice and hit us twice in a very hard way because we struggled every time, especially at the start of the season, it took us time to come back. This was the first season where we didn’t lose a great player and that is why we have an advantage of a better start. And on top of that we bought a great player. That helped even more.”