Manager Arsene Wenger has admitted he feels "a bit lost" as
he bids to prevent Arsenal's poor form in cup competitions
derailing their season. Wenger has endured one of the most
difficult spells in his decade-long reign at the club, with the
Gunners losing in three cup competitions in the space of a
fortnight
Their poor run started with defeat in the Carling Cup final against
Chelsea and continued as they were dumped out of the FA Cup by
Blackburn and beaten by PSV Eindhoven in the last 16 of the
Champions League.
Those results have been compounded by a host of injury problems -
with captain Thierry Henry the biggest loss after being ruled out
for the rest of the season - and the suspensions given to Emmanuel
Adebayor, Emmanuel Eboue and Kolo Toure in the aftermath of the
Carling Cup clash against Jose Mourinho's side.
Wenger said: "Recently we've hit the wall a little bit. "Not
spectacularly but enough that we are not able to push on like on
Wednesday night (against PSV). "On Wednesday we looked for
something special but it didn't come because at the moment it is
not in the team.
"It's the first time it has happened and I'm a little bit lost at
the moment. "I'm always planning for the next game but at the
moment it is a shock to the system as a club because it's the first
time, but I am very busy planning for the Premier League."
The Frenchman is disappointed by the unavailability of key men as
he bids to get his side back on track but has backed the Gunners,
who face Aston Villa in the league on Wednesday, to hit form soon.
"After such a disappointment it's difficult to pick yourself up
again, but on the other hand I know how proud they are and how much
they want to show that they have quality and finish as close as
possible to Manchester United and Chelsea.
"We could have Mathieu Flamini and Justin Hoyte back (for the Villa
match) and Tomas Rosicky will be a little bit short. "But we lose
Gael Clichy, who is suspended and injured, and we lose Kolo,
Adebayor and Eboue who are suspended again.
"We also miss Thierry, Robin van Persie...the list is so long I
must take care not to forget anyone. "But it would be a disaster
for us if this disappointment in the Champions League caused us to
take our foot off the pedal. It is a big test of our mental
strength to show we're on the up and nobody can stop us."
And Wenger believes his Arsenal, buoyed by the efforts of the
squad's young players who starred in the Carling Cup run, will only
go from strength to strength. "I think 95% of things are good in
our team but at the top level it is the 5% that makes the
difference," he told Arsenal TV Online.
"As hard as it is to take, I feel there's a lot of positives and
although we have to correct (some aspects) we can keep the basis of
a strong team. "This team is growing and becoming stronger and
stronger."
