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Tottenham Hotspur 2 – 2 Arsenal
‘We just refused to lose this game’, said Manager, Arsene Wenger as he reflected on his side’s north London derby draw at Tottenham, the spirit of his squad and Coquelin’s red card.
We fought right until the end, Per Mertesacker [pictured above], said, as he faced the media after Arsenal’s draw at Tottenham.
Speaking on Arsenal’s red card and mentality during the interview, Per said: “Even before it was 10 men, we played the perfect away game in my opinion. We defended well together, it was a high tempo from the start. It was unbelievable how we coped with that. We scored first, then we looked dangerous on the break. Up to the red card, we played fantastic and it was a good response. Afterwards, it took us 20 minutes to take advantage 1-0 down. It sounds weird but the team is great.”
Arsène Wenger spoke to the media following Arsenal’s 2-2 draw with Tottenham. This is what he had to say:
on Arsenal showing character…
I feel we have. We showed good attitude and character and I’m happy and proud of our performance and attitude. We refused to lose the game. We have as well big regrets because I could not see how 11 against 11 could have dropped points today. We made a mistake at 1-0 when it was 11 against 11 but even though we had a shock loss and it went to 2-1, we refused to lose the game. We always looked dangerous going forward.
on Coquelin’s red card…
I didn’t have to say a lot to him after that tackle. He made a mistake and he knows he made a big mistake. At half time we warned him as well and it was a mistake. He wanted to do well and mistimed his tackle and got sent off. You cannot complain about it. I can complain that Dier was not sent off. I couldn’t understand that.
on if he is disappointed with Coquelin…
No. Let down is a big word. He made a mistake and he has to quickly learn from that because at a top level it is full commitment and 100 per cent in all the duels in a controlled way. He got a yellow card because he made a mistake to go down on the tackle.
on if Arsenal are still in the title race…
I don’t know because I don’t know what to say about that. Everybody drops points so let’s see what happens over the weekend. I think we have to take encouragement from our performance today and we have to produce that until the end of the season then we might have a chance.
on the best chance they have had…
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I don’t know. Maybe yes. Last year we had no chance but now I don’t know. Three or four years ago we were in the race. It shows that the team has quality and spirit and our balance was right today. We looked dangerous going forward, well organised in midfield and at the back and we moved the ball well. We had a solid performance.
on Alexis…
He had a great attitude today. I hope that will give him needed confidence and encouragement to continue and the goal will give him a lift. Certainly, it will give him a bigger a lift now.
on why Dier didn’t get a caution…
I didn’t see a reason.
on the referee…
I think the referee should come into the press room after the game as well. We are questioned, they should be questioned as well. Then he could give you an answer.
on the pressure…
I must tell you that the pressure from our supporters is relentless and I’m in a good position to tell you that. We have to deal with that. We have to go on a run again. We play on Tuesday night an important game and then we will see if we will play in the FA Cup or the Premier League. We want to win our games.
on last year’s run…
We will see. Leicester plays at Watford, if they win the game they are in a strong position. We are in a position where we not only depend on our own results but the results of teams like Leicester.
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Text credit: arsenal.com
