Arsene Wenger says Arsenal have a “good opportunity” at Everton to prove that they have progressed as a team.
The Gunners were beaten 3-0 at Goodison Park in the corresponding fixture last season, and struggled away from home against most of their biggest rivals.
However, Wenger is confident his side will produce a stronger performance this time around as they underline their growing maturity.
"We have a good opportunity on Saturday to show that we have moved forward and that we are stronger than last year"
“First of all a team is life and life is movement. That means the team doesn’t stand still, we move forward and improve,” the manager said.
“We have young players, which means that every year they can be better. Also the team improves with success, which we had a reasonable [amount of] last year.
“We have a good opportunity on Saturday to show that we have moved forward and that we are stronger than last year.
“On the day, Everton deserved to win. We were unlucky with the goals we conceded because two of them were not regular. We had an off day but I think in a season that can happen.
“We beat them in the FA Cup in a convincing way, so it will be interesting, because they are a team now flirting with the Champions League places. It's a good, good test.”
While Wenger is confident of a positive result on Merseyside, he remains wary of the threat posed by Roberto Martinez’s side.
“They [have a good chance] because this season they have entered the bracket of clubs who spend between £20-30 million for one player,” he said.
“Behind that is the ambition to go into the top four and they were close last year. They lost some pivotal games, I think about Crystal Palace, which allowed us to get in front of them after they beat us. But they have the quality.”
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