Arsene Wenger says life is ‘great’ – as he loves a crisis

Posted Monday, August 22, 2011 by The Sun

ARSENE WENGER insists life at Arsenal is 'great' - because he has the fight of his life on his hands.

The Gunners boss saw his side slump to a 2-0 home defeat to Liverpool on Saturday, with Emmanuel Frimpong sent off after 70 minutes.

Wenger has lost captain Cesc Fabregas to Barcelona as well, while fellow midfield star Samir Nasri looks next out of the door at the Emirates.

The Frenchman is also the subject of a UEFA investigation into accusations he broke his touchline ban by communicating with his players against Udinese last week.

Yet despite the pressure cranking up on him, Wenger bizarrely claims he is pleased with how things are going and is ready to silence his doubters.

He told French TV: "I am a passionate person. It excites me sometimes to fight against the tide, against a lot of things. At the moment things are great, as I have a lot to fight for."

Wenger insists he is not a stubborn man - though until he bolsters his starting line-up, Arsenal fans are unlikely to agree.

He admitted his young stars were 'naive' as they lost their opening Premier League home game to the Kop.

Yet he has failed to buy defensive reinforcements, refused to bring in experience in other key positions and snubbed the chance to sign proven stars with the cash he has available.

Asked if the more fans called for him to buy, the less likely it became, Wenger replied: "No, not at all.

"I look at the players and if they are good enough. What you forget is we have bought players. We have bought Gervinho, Chamberlain, Jenkinson, Myachi and you will see during the season they are top-quality players.

"But at the moment we have to give them some time. Overall, we will buy."

Wenger again insisted he will not walk away from Arsenal.

He added: "People feel I'm stubborn, I'm not. I just want to do the best for the team and to buy the right players.

"If I have shown one thing in the last 15 years, it's that I have brought good players here.

"We will bring experienced players as well. People just say 'buy'. But it's buying the right player which is difficult.

"We were a bit young against Liverpool, I agree. I agree as well we looked a bit naive in some situations. But we showed a great spirit and were really unlucky. I don't feel we deserved to lose the game."

That he has bought good players cannot be disputed. But equally undeniable is that Arsenal are a shadow of the side who have challenged for the title throughout Wenger's time at the club.

In the middle of an injury crisis, Wenger is adamant he will not hesitate to pick Nasri for Wednesday's crucial Champions League return against Udinese - even if that cup-ties the player before any possible move to Manchester City.

Asked whether he was worried about a possible cup block on the French star, Wenger said: "No. What is important to us is to qualify."

He refused to be drawn on whether rumours were true that the Nasri deal had stalled and denied failure to qualify for the Champions League group stages would impact on his transfer movements.

Wenger declared: "We have the money to buy players. We are not short of money. And we want to qualify because we want to play in the Champions League."

He will welcome back Alex Song and Gervinho, suspended in the Premier League, as his side try to hang on to a 1-0 first-leg lead in Italy.

Jack Wilshere and Johan Djourou could also return.

Boos greeted the finish after Aaron Ramsey's own goal and a late Luis Suarez strike gave Liverpool victory.

Wenger admitted: "I feel we have a more negative environment, so it's a bit more difficult for the team.

"That's why the results are so important, to gain back confidence quickly. Qualifying for the Champions League is important. We will do it."