With a three-point deficit to Chelsea in the Premier
League, Arsenal now look
increasingly unlikely to end their five-year wait for silverware
this season and Wenger promised changes this summer.
“We have to add something, for sure, but we have some time to
think about that,” said Wenger. “We are at a stage where we’re
developing players.
"Walcott is 22, Bendtner is 22. Nasri, Diaby, Denilson are 23 or
22. They’ve shown some great qualities and they’ll get stronger
every year.
“What we did was very positive but we lacked maturity in the
weight of the final ball. The defeat is difficult to handle
because, when you go out of the Champions League, the next day you
are in front of a very empty future.
"Our dreams are involved in that, but you have to address the
disappointment and make sure you’re ready for the next game because
we cannot drop any points to have a chance to fight for the Premier
League.”
Wenger is close to confirming the free transfer of Bordeaux
forward Marouane Chamakh and will also make a new centre-back one
of his main priorities during the summer.
In the absence of William Gallas, the back-up of Sol Campbell
and Mikael Silvestre has not proved adequate to cope with the duel
demands of the Premier and Champions League. Gallas, Campbell and
Silvestre are also out of contract at the end of the season, with
all negotiations currently on hold.
“At the moment it’s not the priority,” said Wenger. “The
priority is to recover from the game. We have played quite well,
with a lot of character as ever, but we made a few too many
mistakes. Silvestre and Campbell are two good players. The regret I
have is that we made too many mistakes defensively.”
