'It was a physical and mental test'

For 70 minutes of Tuesday’s game against Bournemouth, we looked to be heading for a heavy defeat that could have had major consequences for our title bid.

But once again, we showed our character to fight back and claim a 3-3 draw thanks to Olivier Giroud’s injury-time header.

• Read the report from the Vitality Stadium
• Cech - We showed great character
• 'I'm pleased... but I'm also frustrated'

Arsene Wenger had mixed emotions after the game, and this is what he told the media:

on the comeback…
Yes, it was a physical test and a mental test for us. A physical test because we had problems to start to cope with the pace of Bournemouth. Defensively we had some problems and I think you have to acknowledge the quality of Bournemouth - congratulations to them. But as well, it’s too uneven to have only two days to play against a team with over three days rest. It took us a while to get back into the game. On top of that, we were a bit unlucky as well - to concede a penalty and after the third goal, for us, with 70 minutes played we were 3-0 down. So it was a mental test, but we succeeded because we have a great resilience in the team and great mental strength and that came out. In the end you are even frustrated not to win the game. We missed some opportunities in the end. A corner into the hands of the goalkeeper, instead of taking an in-swinger we should’ve taken an out-swinger, these are the details that you have to keep composure and play until the last minute. That’s down to keeping your head cool.

on what the game says about his team…
That the opponent scored three goals and that we conceded three goals, that’s what it says. I said that we suffered defensively tonight in some positions but they scored four against Liverpool here so they can score goals you know. It’s a team who is dangerous but I agree with you that defensively we had some weaknesses tonight that were unusual and in some positions at the back we suffered.

on what this means for our title chances…
We don’t really speak about us and we do not look around us at the moment. Your team is doing well but you can still lose it, so it’s just down to the other teams to continue to fight.

on whether we would’ve won the game with more recovery time…
Look, I am ready to play tomorrow again as long as we play against an opponent who has played today as well. That is what I call fair. All the rest, we have to play when we are told to play but we want to play against a team with the same time of rest and preparation that we have.