Wednesday 24 December 2014

Arsene Wenger eyeing strong Arsenal finish

Arsene Wenger has vowed Arsenal will empty the tank in the second half of the season as they seek to capitalise on an easing injury crisis.
Wenger expects Mesut Ozil and Mikel Arteta to return to action in January, while Theo Walcott, Aaron Ramsey and Laurent Koscielny are due back imminently to help reignite the Gunners' quest for a top-four finish in the Barclays Premier League.
The Christmas schedule features fixtures against QPR, West Ham and Southampton and Wenger believes Arsenal, who occupy sixth place in the table, will soon be in a position to realise their potential.
"To give absolutely everything in every single game until the end of the season," replied Wenger when asked to outline his aspirations for his team heading into the festive period.
"I believe that with the injuries coming back we will have a much stronger squad than we had for the past two months.
"I believe 2015 can be very exciting if we manage to get our injured players back and have a good run.
"Finishing in the top four is always the minimum required here. We have the Champions League and we have the FA Cup and we want to come back in a much stronger position in the Premier League, and I think we will.
"Our Christmas is not an easy schedule - it's a tough schedule. There are three games in a very short period of time and we can make up points.
"It's a period where you have an opportunity to make points. Our opponents will think that as well, but let's just put the performances in and capitalise on it."