North London giants Arsenal will be travelling away to the Goldsands Stadium on Sunday for their clash against AFC Bournemouth in the Premier Leauge.
Arsene Wenger’s side are currently placed in fourth spot in the points table and are slowly fading away from the title race. With just one win, in their last five games in all compeititons, things are not looking too good for the Gunners who will be keen in getting all three points from this must-win contest. The French manager would know that his side are not in the best of form at the moment, though the fact that some of his star players are back from injury would surely boost the morale of the squad.
Arsenal really need to start performing at their very best, as they get ready to face off against European champions Barcelona in the round of 16 of the Champions League soon and are currently five points behind league leaders Leicester City.
Here is what Wenger had to say in his pre-match press conference prior to this game:
Talking about his player’s fitness, he said, “We lost Tomas Rosicky against Burnley but Danny Welbeck will play for the under-21s today.”
On Afobe, he stated, “We are aware that Benik Afobe is quick and strong. We are used to facing this.”
On Welbeck he added, “He needs to play a few games before coming back. He needs to be patient.”
About his side’s current form, he said, “We have gone through a bad patch but you have to recover. We are still in the title race.”
Further, commenting on his opponents for Sunday, he said, “They will stay up. I have always thought that. They have enough substance.”
Surely the need for goals can’t be ignored and Wenger told the reporters, “We shouldn’t be alarmed. The quality of our performances were there.”
Adding his thoughts on Afobe, “He had players ahead of him here. We are happy for him, he has done extremely well.”
Concluding with a comment on Zidane, he said, “He was given a chance and I wish him all the success he deserves. I hope he does well.”