Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger was full of praise for his players as his side climbed to the top of the Premier League standings after a 2-1 victory over Everton at the Emirates stadium.
Wenger was quick to point out the winning mentality of his current squad a a trait often found wanting from his team in recent seasons a as they recovered from a opening day defeat to West Ham to go top of the Premier League for the first time since February, 2014.
Arsenal under Wengera s management have developed a tendency, over the years, of collapsing under pressure, and will look to build on their results over the past week. Arsenal resurrected their faltering UEFA Champions League campaign with a 2-0 victory over mighty Bayern Munich in midweek and followed it up with a victory on Saturday against a well organised Everton side.
The victory over Roberto Martineza s side meant Arsenal went ahead of Manchester City, who face Manchester United on Sunday, as they maintain the pressure on the early season leaders.
Pundits, who felt Arsenal blew their best chance for the title after failing to sign reinforcements, have been critical of Wenger following his 2-0 loss to West Ham on the opening day of the season.
Wenger lauds winning mentality of his Arsenal players
“We lost the first game here at the Emirates and after that no one would have said we would be top tonight,”Wenger told Goal.com (via . Sky Sports).
“When you win such a big game like they did on Tuesday it shows a lot about the mentality of your team,” Wenger said.”That’s why I’m very proud of my team because they’ve shown the ability to refocus.”
Asked about Giroud’s goalscoring spree in recent weeks, Wenger responded by saying, “Giroud came on and made a difference. When he starts he makes a difference.”
“There were a lot of questions on our strikers. Giroud and Walcott are outstanding at the moment and that confidence shows,” the coach added.
Arsenala s striker conundrum
Pundits have been scathing in their response to Wengera s adamant nature in not signing a forward during the summer transfer window. However, Wengera s trust in his current strike force came through for him on Saturday, as Giroud continued his goal-scoring streak after regaining his place in the starting lineup for Arsenal.
There were doubts about Walcott’s calibre as a number 9 at the start of the season but Walcott proved his doubters wrong as he combined well with his teammates using his electric pace and intelligent movement. Walcott’s movement was the key reason behind the victory against Manchester United as he notched up two assists with his intelligent movement.