Arsenal were held to a draw by Middlesbrough in a tense encounter at Emirates Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
Arsene Wenger faced the media afterwards and discussed his side’s display, Petr Cech’s fine individual performance and more. This is what he had to say:
on whether he was frustrated that it ended 0-0…
I think I have a frustrated face, certainly, and I am. We had a lot of the ball, in the modern game it’s maybe not enough to win the games. We had 75 per cent possession but we didn’t have our usual pace in the combination or enough sharpness in our movement. In the first 20 minutes we were quite satisfied, after Middlesbrough came back in the game and were dangerous on the break. In the end, we couldn’t win it. At least we were intelligent enough not to lose it.
on whether not being able to win was down to tiredness…
Yes, you are right. We paid a little price for the Champions League on Wednesday night and usually when you play at home you still would like to manage to win but we couldn’t. We could’ve lost the game as well in the first half, but that’s the modern game you know. If you don’t score early, if you’re not sharp enough, if you’re not creative enough. We lacked a bit of creativity today and then you can have a draw or even lose the game.
on Petr Cech making crucial saves…
This week, I must say our two goalkeepers had two great performances. You know, Ospina on Wednesday night and Petr Cech today and that shows you how important it is to have two top-class goalkeepers.
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