Arsene Wenger says that Arsenal lacked the sharpness to break down Sunderland at Emirates Stadium.
The Gunners dominated possession and created four times as many chances as Dick Advocaat’s side, but they could not beat goalkeeper Costel Pantilimon.
It was Arsenal’s second fixture in four days and Wenger believes his side were still suffering from the effects of the Manchester United game.
"We didn’t really look like scoring and we lacked a bit of sharpness, change of pace, speed in our movement and Sunderland did the rest"
Arsene Wenger
“It is frustrating because we had 75 per cent possession and 28 shots on goal but we couldn’t score,” he told Arsenal Player. “We didn’t really look like scoring and we lacked a bit of sharpness, change of pace, speed in our movement and Sunderland did the rest.
“We gave a lot at Manchester United and you could see that we had not completely recovered. It shows how vital the point was at Manchester United, to get three points in front of them, and now we have to finish well on Sunday - that’s important.”
Wednesday’s draw was Jack Wilshere’s first start since November and Wenger was pleased with the England midfielder’s contribution, as well as David Ospina’s vital saves.
“Overall it was a good performance [from Wilshere],” he said. “He had a good change of pace, had good penetration, gave good balls and worked very hard. I’m not disappointed by his game.
“Ospina has been absolutely great since he played and he has shown that again. In one against ones he has shown that he is outstanding.”
Jack Wilshere
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