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‘There’s no overweight players now’

Arsene Wenger says his players can hit the ground running in pre-season because they keep themselves in excellent condition during their summer break.

The Arsenal manager takes his squad to France, the United States, Norway and Sweden before the Premier League campaign gets underway on August 14.

“[The target is] to get them as fit as possible, and what has changed compared to 10 or 15 years ago [is that] the players come back basically fit today.

"Look at the schedule we have, it is a very difficult schedule and [we must] focus on the players who are here because they are certainly the players who will start the season"

Arsene Wenger

“There’s no overweight players anymore, there’s no players anymore who have not prepared or done his homework and you can start straight away with normal training. Before you had to dedicate two or three weeks first to get everybody to the stage where they can practice normally.

“It’s not especially individuals, it is just the lifestyle that has changed in the last 15 years. Everybody around you, not just football players, is fitter than he was 15 years ago.

“[We want the players] to be as sharp as possible. Look at the schedule we have, it is a very difficult schedule and [we must] focus on the players who are here because they are certainly the players who will start the season.

“We have a nice variety [to our pre-season schedule],” added Wenger. “I wanted a game before we travelled to the States. After three weeks of training I think we need a game and in the States will be interesting as well.

“We had a good experience in New York [in 2014] and after that we travel to [Scandinavia] and we finish with Man City just before the championship starts. Let’s not forget that we play Liverpool and Leicester in the first two games so we have to be ready physically and fitness-wise.”

 

 

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