News

'Kolasinac was outstanding… he was born strong'

Arsene Wenger discusses the Bosnia international after he scored his first goal for the club in our Community Shield win against Chelsea

As debuts go, Sead Kolasinac’s was pretty unforgettable. 

The Bosnia international came on in the first half of our Community Shield win against Chelsea, slotting into our back three and impressing with a faultless performance at the back.

Not only that, but Kolasinac equalised for us in the 82nd minute with a powerful header, before watching us beat the Blues on penalties at Wembley.

Arsene Wenger was full of praise for our new signing afterwards, saying:

on Sead Kolasinac…

He came on well. He’s normally a wing-back or a full-back but he can also play at centre back. He had a very interesting performance last week and I had a hesitation over playing him from the start today. I thought maybe the pressure of Wembley… but when he came on, he was outstanding.

on whether his power will make it easy for him to adapt to English football…

I would say yes. He is physically very strong naturally. There are players who are pumped up in the gym and players who are born strong. He is the second part.

on whether that convinced him to buy Kolasinac…

In the Premier League, power plays a part, but it’s not only that. We took him as well because of his attitude. I believe that the modern game doesn’t tolerate as many weaknesses as it did 20 years ago and you always need a combination of talent and attitude. He looks to me that he has good talent, but as well a very strong and determined attitude, supported by a strong body.

on Lacazette’s debut…

Lacazette is getting stronger every week and I believe today it’s the first time that you’ve seen that physically. He still needs to adapt to the intensity of the game, but overall in the first half he had very interesting movements and I believe that from what we see today, he will become stronger and stronger and he had a very interesting game.

See Full List

Fixtures & Results

Premier League
Ticket Info