Boss - Possession not rewarded as before

Arsene Wenger says it is tougher to win home games in the Premier League because possession is not rewarded as much as it was before.

Arsenal have averaged 58 per cent possession in the league this season and have won five of their eight home games, compared to six of their nine on the road.

Eight of the top 14 teams in the division have a better record away from home and Wenger believes this is because sides are now better equipped to play on the counter-attack.

“It looks like it’s linked with a trend where the possession is not rewarded as much as it was before,” he said. “Certainly it’s the first year in the Premier League that doesn’t give the win as much as before. That could explain the fact that the away teams do better.

“Why is that? Because away teams are better organised defensively, better prepared physically than ever before. When you have possession in the last 20 minutes you always could win the games. Now the teams who continue to play have the same ability, the same tactical ability, and they don’t suffer as much physically in the last 20 minutes.

“The transition from defence to attack has become much better because the players are quicker physically and they expose you much more when you play at home than away from home.

“I’m inside my job so I keep my philosophy but as well I am an observer. I go through all the stats of the game like you and I try to understand whether there’s something new, whether something different is happening which was not there before.

“At the moment I’ve gone through all the possessions and it’s true that more and more - I think in eight games out of 10 last week - the team who won had less possession.”