Alex Lacazette’s goal gave us hope. An offside goal snuffed it out.
That sums up how the final stages of Sunday’s game at Manchester City unfolded, a game in which we flickered with attacking potential but ended up with nothing.
Arsene Wenger faced the media straight after the game, and here’s how he saw it:
on not being happy with the penalty and the third goal...
Yes.
on why…
You have seen what I seen - you judge how you want. I think the fact that you tell me that it’s an offside goal shows enough. I don’t want to take anything away from City’s quality but it happened at a moment where we were really in the game, at 2-1. It killed the game. We had two offside goals here last year and we had one again this year. Apart from that, I felt that we started well in the first 10 minutes. After, we suffered because we played too deep for 25 minutes. In the last 10 minutes [of the first half] we came back into the game. In the second half, it was an even game. It was us chasing the game and them always being dangerous on counter-attacks. I felt that we put a lot of effort in and at 2-1, you could feel that we could come back. The 3-1 was an immense result for them, an unexpected present. But it is as it is. At 3-1, you have to go forward. We played with four offensive players and every counter-attack looked like they could score. But that’s the history of the game that created that.
on how different it could have been if Ramsey had scored at end of the first half…
I don’t know. You must know that much better. I felt that the game is what it is. We knew before the game that we’d have some moments where we’d suffer. We tried to be solid at the back and overall I felt before the game that I knew that we could be in trouble with their pace, with the strikers they have. That’s why we tried to play our usual system. When we were 2-0 down, of course we had to take a gamble and after that, I felt we were more in the game.
on whether anyone can stop Manchester City…
Look, can anyone stop them? It will be difficult this season, the way they have started, the way they’re on a run, the quality they have. They will be difficult to stop, but you never know. If on top of that, at home, they have the decisions for them like that, they will be unstoppable.
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