The Nation Newspaper

Tag: wenger

  • Wenger hails brave Iwobi

    Wenger hails brave Iwobi

    Arsenal manager,  Arsene Wenger, had kind words to say about his young Nigerian forward, Alex Iwobi after the Gunners 3 – 1 triumph over Sunderland in the FA Cup on Saturday.

    The teenager sparkled in his first start at the Emirates Stadium and was involved in the equalizer netted by Joel Campbell in the first half .

    “I liked the timing of his passes. In the middle of the park that is a vital quality and that fact he plays forward and sees [things].

    “As a young boy he is not afraid to come on and that is not easy, ” Wenger told reporters, according to arsenal.com.

    If the Community Shield is thrown into the mix, Iwobi has been included in Arsenal’s 18 – man squad 14 times this season by the Frenchman.

  • Wenger, NFF strike accord

    Wenger, NFF strike accord

    NFF President Amaju  Pinnick held what was  generally described as an “extremely positive and encouraging” meeting with the Manager of English Premiership side, Arsenal FC,  Arsene Wenger on Tuesday.

    The legendary manager met with the NFF supremo in his office at Arsenal FC’s training ground where a wide range of issues were discussed, including the rising stock of Nigerian-born players at the club – players like Chuba Akpom and Semi Ajayi.

    After the meeting, Pinnick, who was accompanied by the new Special Envoy for the Federation on International Affairs, Tunde Adelakun, said: “As we had always known, Arsene is very knowledgeable; vast in his knowledge and appreciation of Nigeria as a footballing country, and widely philosophical in his general approach, assuring that, contrary to what is reported about some clubs in Europe trying to steer their players to play for the countries where they live, Wenger was emphatic on what should be.

    “He told me that he has never stopped any player from opting for whichever national team he wants. He said that he always tells his players to follow their hearts and not allow people to push them. He further assured that if Nigeria extended a call-up to either or both of his players, he will have no objection if the players say they want to go.”

    Pinnick had led the charge to Arsenal to enlist Wenger’s support in “the process of rebuilding the country’s football,” and he was not disappointed.

    “Arsene told us that he will gladly do what he can to assist where we want, and has already started giving encouraging signs towards the capacity building exercises for our coaches at all levels.”

  • Wenger: Kanu’s hat-trick one of my best

    Wenger: Kanu’s hat-trick one of my best

    Exactly 15 years ago, Nigerian legend, Kanu Nwankwo entered into Arsenal folklore with a well-taken hat-trick against Chelsea in the English Premier League.

    Kanu’s moment in the limelight capped one of the all-time great comebacks in the English top flight as Arsenal stunned Gianluca Vialli’s men.

    And Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has declared it as one of the best goals he has seen in his coaching career.

    Strangely, it was 2-0 to Chelsea (Tore Andre Flo and Dan Petrescu had scored earlier in the game) with a quarter of an hour left to play on that fateful day, October 23, 1999 at Stamford Bridge, before Kanu decided to mark his name on the sands of time.

    Papillo, as Kanu is fondly called, deftly brought a wild Marc Overmars shot under control before stabbing in to give Arsenal faint hope. He then levelled matters eight minutes later by drilling past Blues goalkeeper Ed de Goey.

    And with 90 minutes on the clock, the lanky striker completed the unbelievable comeback with a ridiculously-taken goal that fans still talk about to this day.

    De Goey rushed out to meet the striker on the byline, but Kanu jinked past him and curled his shot into the top corner to the delight of the delirious away fans.

    Kanu discussed those unforgettable moments with Fifa.com explaining that netting against “a formidable” Chelsea side still represents fulfillment.

    “I have very good memories of that game. It felt great to score against such a formidable team as Chelsea and it just shows the game is not over until it is over.

    “I was not particularly out to get the better of Marcel (Desailly), Frank (Lebeouf) or (goalkeeper Ed) de Goey that day, I just wanted to play my game and bring out the best of the tricks in my bag to outwit my opponent and score for my team.

    “I worked the goalkeeper into a position where I could sell a dummy to him, which of course he bought,” he recalled. “I lifted up my head and picked out the far top corner of the net, which I quickly curled the ball into pretty much from where I stood.”

    The Arsenal manager, Arsene Wenger is still full of awe for his former Nigerian forward whom he admitted “proved him wrong” on the day.

    “I expected him to cross. If he hadn’t scored it could have upset you because he really should have passed. However, great players can prove you wrong. It is one of the best goals I’ve seen,” Wenger said.

    Kanu scored 30 goals in league appearances for the Gunners between 1999 and 2004.

  • Understanding will grow—Wenger

    Understanding will grow—Wenger

    Arsène Wenger admits that his summer signings are not quite on the same wavelength as their new team-mates – but he expects that to happen soon.

    Alexis Sanchez, Mathieu Debuchy and Calum Chambers all made their Premier League debuts for Arsenal against Crystal Palace on Saturday and all three impressed. Alexis played a part in both goals, Debuchy forced the save that led to Aaron Ramsey’s late winner and Chambers was composed at the back.

    Wenger knows it will take time for his new-look side to click but he saw promising signs at the weekend.

    “Technically the performance could have been better but the attitude and the not-give-up attitude was fantastic,” he told Arsenal Player. “In the end it got us through.

    “It’s normal, with the pre-season preparation we had, that we have some co-ordination problems, but overall I’m very happy with the attitude of the team.

    “There was some misunderstanding in our passing but overall I felt at the back Debuchy and Chambers played very well, they were really controlled. [Alexis] had good spells but he has to improve the understanding with his partners. The three of them have been very satisfying.”

    The Arsenal manager also praised Ramsey after he popped up in the six-yard box to end Palace’s resistance in stoppage time.

    “It’s important for us that he can score goals,” said Wenger. “It’s a continuity of what he has delivered last season and that’s good for us.”

     

     

  • Arsene Wenger unconcerned by Giroud fitness

    Arsene Wenger insists Olivier Giroud will be back to his best for Arsenal in no time after a sluggish showing against Monaco on Sunday.

    The France international returned late to pre-season training due to featuring for his country at the World Cup in Brazil.

    Giroud played the first half of Arsenal’s 1-0 defeat to Ligue 1 runners-up Monaco in the Emirates Cup and appeared to be lacking in fitness.

    But Wenger – who sees his side contest the Community Shield with Manchester City on Sunday – is not concerned by the 27-year-old’s display.

    “He had only three weeks rest, it was not an eternity and he had to come back quickly,” Wenger said.

    “But sometimes when you come back late you want to work hard and in a game you are not as sharp.

    “He’s not put weight on, he’s not out of shape, he’s worked very hard this week and not recovered from the work he has done.”

    Giroud admitted to struggling to get to grips with the pace of the game, but feels he will be better prepared after another week of intensive training.

    “It was really hard for me physically and I didn’t feel really well in the game,” he said.

    “But it is OK as I have this week to work because we have to be ready for City.

    “For pre-season preparation you have to work hard and there is less than one week to be ready.”

  • Wenger proud of barren years

    Arsene Wenger believes his role in ensuring Arsenal remained competitive during their barren years has been the most important achievement of his reign.

    Wenger’s side ended their nine-year trophy drought when they beat Hull City to win the FA Cup in May.

    The Frenchman had delivered three Premier League titles since taking the reins in 1996 but Arsenal’s move to Emirates Stadium left them unable to compete financially with other title rivals for almost a decade.

    However, Wenger still managed to guide Arsenal to top-four finishes in every season and finally ended his trophy jinx with a 3-2 win over Hull.

    “I accepted the challenge when I signed my contract knowing what would happen,” he said.

    “Personally, I think it was the most sensitive and important period of my career here – it was exciting to keep the club at the level with less resources.

    “Did we do well or not? The only thing I can say is that we were consistent at that level but maybe we lacked some quality to really win it.

    “The only thing I can assure you is that I gave absolutely everything to do as well as I could. Is it enough? You’ll never know. Could someone have done better? You never know.”

    With the FA Cup success behind him, Wenger penned another contract extension at the club, with the new three-year deal taking him until 2017.

    Motivation

    Negotiations over the deal were lengthy and, although Wenger is adamant he always wanted to sign, he would not be drawn on whether victory in the cup final played a part in his decision.

    “I don’t want to answer that question,” he replied when asked if there would have been doubt over his future without the trophy win.

    “Was it always going to happen? Certainly. I always said the same thing, I want to think that I have done well for the club. My motivation was never at stake, I always wanted to stay.

  • Wenger rules out striker sign-on this summer

    ArseneWenger has no intention of signing a striker after Milan denied that Arsenal has lodged a bid for Mario Balotelli.

    The London club were reported to have agreed a fee for Italy striker Balotelli at the weekend, but Milan chief executive Adriano Galliani insisted that is not the case.

    “Balotelli to Arsenal? We have not received any offer and at the moment there is nothing,” he told reporters.

    Wenger had been expected to bolster his forward line ahead of the new season, and he has already completed the signing of Alexis Sanchez from Barcelona.

    And the Frenchman has now revealed that bringing in a goalkeeper and possibly a centre-back are his priorities for the remainder of the transfer window.

    “It depends whether our midfielders get through now until the start of the season without injuries,” said Wenger.

    “Up front we don’t need any more, maybe I will still bring in one centre-back. I will bring in a goalkeeper for sure and we are still out there to strengthen our squad.

    “You do the deals when it’s possible, this time we could do it early and I am very happy with what I have done until now. It’s easier to prepare, but we are not the only club who have done business.

    “Some other clubs have also done business – Chelsea, Manchester United and Liverpool have bought great players and the competition should be interesting again next season.”

  • Wenger vows to finish off Emenike, others

    Wenger vows to finish off Emenike, others

    Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has disclosed that he will leave nothing to chance when Super Eagles duo of Joseph Yobo, Emmanuel Emenike and their Fenerbahce team-mates file out against his side at the Emirates on Tuesday.

    Emenike and Yobo visit the Emirates Stadium with the Yellow Canaries for the second leg of their UEFA Champions League play-offs fixture on Tuesday, with the aim of overturning a-three goal deficit following last Wednesday’s loss in Istanbul.

    futaa.com gather that the Gunners’ boss is determined to unleash a deadly squad on the Turkish side despite holding a 3-0 advantage.

    When asked if he was going to rest players on Tuesday, Wenger replied: “No. We’ll just try to win it on Tuesday. For us it’s important to finish the job and get the focus right.

    “We have made a big step but it’s not over the line. Now, we want to finish the job because that’s a big part of our season.”

    “The group stage of the Champions League is highly-important. I will not rest players on Tuesday night, certainly not,” he told arsenal.com

    Wenger’s men who suffered a shocking home defeat to Aston Villa in their opening game of the new EPL season returned to winning ways with an impressive 3-1 away victory over Fulham last Saturday.

  • Oboabona denies criticising Wenger

    Oboabona denies criticising Wenger

    Sunshine Stars ace,Gofrey Oboabona has denied ever criticising Arsenal manager, Arsene Wenger.

    “I never said anything about a highly respected manager like Mr Wenger showing me a lack of respect,” he said.

    Oboabona also says he was not aware of any invitation for a trial.

    “I have had so many text messages, phone calls about it, the rumour that I was invited on trial was not true, I only read about it like everyone else,” he explained to the BBC.

    “I’ve always said I will take my time, focus on my development as a player and continue to give my best in every game.

    “At the appropriate time, when clubs must have seen me well enough, they will hopefully approach Sunshine Stars in Nigeria.

    “My desire is to grow every day, sadly all the things written about Arsenal did not come from me.”

    The 22-year-old played a big part in Nigeria’s victorious 2013 Africa Cup of Nations campaign and was also part of their Confederations Cup squad.

    He was an integral part of Nigeria’s qualification for the African Nations Championship, the continent’s tournament for locally based players only, for the first ever time.

    The Sunshine Stars’ chairman, Mike Idoko also insisted there has been no approach from Arsenal.

    “It all began in the media and ends there,” he told BBC Sport.

    “If there was any substance to the story, we expect Arsenal would approach his club first.

    “We haven’t had any official communication with Arsenal or any Premier League club about [Godfrey] Oboabona.”

  • Oboabona meets with Wenger next week

    Oboabona meets with Wenger next week

    Sunshine Stars captain Godfrey Oboabona is due to meet with the manager of Arsenal FC Arsene Wenger next week, futaa.com can report.

    The player, who shone like a million stars at the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations, has attracted the interest of the London club as they seek to fortify their defense.

    The Nigerian is now set to meet with Wenger ahead of the commencement of his trials at the club.

    “Godfrey has an appointment with Wenger in a week or two. After the meeting, he could commence trials in a bid to pen a deal with the Gunners,” a source revealed to futaa.com. Oboabona played every match at the AFCON 2013.

    Wenger is now set to run the rule over the £1m-rated defender who has won 18 caps for the Nigeria national team and is currently playing his club football with Nigeria Premier league side Sunshine Stars.