Arsene Wenger has been speaking ahead of Sunday’s Premier League kick-off against Liverpool at Emirates Stadium.
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Read on for five key quotes from his press conference:
on what gives him confidence ahead of new season…
I think we have stability. We finished second last season and we have all the desire to improve as a team, so we know that we have to jump forward and continue to improve. That’s why I believe that our pre-season games were encouraging. But of course now we go for points and want to transfer the confidence we got from our pre-season into efficiency in the championship.
on whether he is as excited as ever for the new season…
Yes, I must say even more so. There is anxiety because you want to do well and you know how important it is, and maybe this season more than ever it looks like every club has new ambition so it promises to be a very exciting one and a very difficult one as well. We are on a good run in the Premier League… a 10-game unbeaten run, and we want to continue that. I think we are focused, we have a huge desire in the squad, we are very ambitious and we are humble enough as well to know that it is difficult in every single game to win in the Premier League.z
on six or seven clubs being in the title race…
From last season you have two [pieces of] information. First, it’s not necessarily the club who invested the most who won the championship or who had been at the top. The second thing is that teams like Leicester created a huge surprise. Will that be repeated by Leicester or somebody else? That makes the contest even more difficult.
on the favourites to win the title…
I don’t know. Everybody wonders what will happen there and everybody will be keen to see the results of the first game to see where the strengths and weaknesses are. It is very difficult this season to predict and give any favourites. You cannot dismiss Liverpool, just like anybody else. We have about eight or nine teams that can [feel] they have a chance to win it.
on whether it’s good to get Liverpool out of the way early on…
No, I believe it’s not necessarily what Liverpool wanted or what we wanted. Usually you would like four or five games before the big games turn up, but the fixtures are as they are and you have to deal with it. It’s the same problem for both teams.
Stay tuned for more Playbuzz quizzes soon!
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