BPL: Arsenal 0-0 Liverpool
Coach Arsenal Wenger reacts:
On a clean sheet being a positive…
Yes. You’ve summed it up well.
on Aaron Ramsey’s goal was incorrectly ruled out…
Yes. I cannot say the opposite. It was a regular goal. It was a period of the game where we maybe had the most problems defensively but it’s a regular goal. I can’t see why it was cancelled. It’s clear and on that front you cannot say that Liverpool can complain.
on whether he has spoken to the referee…
Yes. I didn’t ask for any explanation. What does it change? It’s about decision-making and he got it wrong. I could see live that he could not be offside. He started his run behind his man. I could see it from where I was but I thought maybe the angle on TV was different. It was not and I must say that Liverpool played well in the first half. We were insecure defensively and we gave them many balls. We created trouble for ourselves but even in the first half we had chances.
on Petr Cech…
During that period, yes he was outstanding.
on losing both centre backs before the game…
Chambers and Gabriel do not have the experience of playing together, they’ve come in from one day into the next, but overall we didn’t concede. Petr Cech saved us two or three times in the first half. In the second half I think we should’ve won the game. We were a bit unlucky, we lacked a bit physically and collectively to finish what we started. Our game is still not fluent enough in the final third, and that’s why we didn’t score. The West Ham game left a trace in our heads, and it was important tonight not to lose because you could see that was a shock for us and it was important for us to get that game out of our system.
on whether Arsenal need more powerful midfielders…
Everybody has their opinion and everybody is entitled to have an opinion. I could prove to you that it’s not necessarily right, but let’s not go into that debate tonight. When you don’t win, you’re wrong and people always find reasons why. Are they the good reasons? I think I have enough experience and intelligence to know when it’s right and when it’s wrong.
On the opposite side, Liverpool counterpart was pretty satisfied with the point at the Emirates:
“Our performance level is growing all the time, you see our defensive organisation was very good against a top-class team. The overriding feeling is we get a point, a clean sheet and we move to the next game.”
“We definitely could have had all three points. Certainly performance-wise, I was very happy with how we worked.
“The first half in particular we created chances and should have been in front. Second half, you expect some pressure in the game, but we defended that very well and always looked a threat going forward.
