Arsenal 0-2 Schalke
Assistant coach
on a frustrating night…
We haven’t played anything like we can, I think that’s the big disappointment. We haven’t performed today. We lack a bit of confidence, for whatever reason, but it’s a tough competition and they [Schalke] are a good side in all fairness. They beat Dortmund at the weekend and played really well. A 0-0 would have delighted us I think.
on the reasons behind the defeat…
We looked jaded, I don’t know why that is. Coming off the international break we haven’t performed really. I don’t know if that’s the reason but we definitely look jaded. With the ball we lack a bit of confidence. [Not creating chances] is not what we want, it’s not what we’re accustomed to. We normally create chances and at the moment we’re not, so we have to correct that.
on the state of Group B…
We’ve got nine points to play for. Wherever we get those points [we need] from, it doesn’t matter. I’m sure we’re perform a lot better next time.
on Walcott, Oxlade-Chamberlain and Wilshere returning…
I’m not sure about Walcott, the other two might be considered [on Saturday. It’s not set in stone yet. We might [need that], one or two need freshening up I think.
on the substitutions…
They were certainly pre-planned. At 0-0 we weren’t playing great, I was reluctant to change it too early. Then when we changed it we lost a goal, so it didn’t work. Of course we miss [Arsène Wenger on the bench], he’s the manager of this club. It’s his job, that’s what he does.
on recent form…
I thought we looked really sharp and confident at the West Ham game and since returning from the internationals we’ve looked jaded. Maybe we are missing some momentum. We need to pick it up again, we’ve got a really tough game on Saturday, regardless of positions in the table. We found that out last weekend so it’s going to be tough.
on the solution to being jaded…
I think scoring first will be a major plus for us at the minute. We’ve got behind in I think the last five games and to keep coming back is tough at times. We might need an early first goal, it wouldn’t half help.
on the defensive performance…
Schalke are a good side and we spoke at half-time about the problems we were getting. We looked like we were going to get away with it for an awful long time. The first goal was a poor goal [to concede]. It was a great finish, I’ve just seen it again, but it’s not great [from our perspective].
on Andre Santos…
I think he’s done fabulous, coming in. It was tough, they had two very good players, their two best players, down that side. It was a tough game for us.
on the fans’ frustration…
We’ve lost at home and of course the fans are frustrated. We are too. We don’t like losing football games. We have to pick ourselves up.
