Football Update: Gael Clichy expects Arsenal to triumph over Manchester United
Arsenal left back, Gael Clichy maintains that the Gunners would rather put their sparkling style of football in the backseat if it meant beating the Red Devils at Old Trafford on Monday night.
Arsenal set their sights for a trip to the Theatre of Dreams as they hope to prolong their stay at the top of the league. Gael Clichy pointed out that a win could ensure some much needed breathing space for the Gunners as it would propel them four points
clear of the team in second.
However, Arsenal’s track record hasn’t been much to brag about as they have failed to win on United’s territory since the past 4 years. Thankfully, for Arsene Wenger, Clichy recovered just in time from the virus that sidelined him for the Champions League
clash in mid week. The North London team already had to suffer a defensive setback, as Kieran Gibbs hobbled off the field with a recurrence of an ankle injury, while Thomas Vermaelen is expected to be out of action till next year.
The French international left back further emphasized on the fact that while top priority was winning the game by playing good football, what truly mattered in the end was getting the right result on the night. The number 22 argued that if a team plays well
and still goes on to lose the match, the quality of football played amounts to very little seeing that the other team scores points.
“Okay, it gives you credit you are a good player and you play for a good side, but at the end of the day if you can be four points ahead of the second place, that is all that matters”
Gael Clichy is the last remaining member of Arsenal’s infamous ‘Invincibles’ and definitely knows a thing or two about winning. The 2003 season wasn’t a walk in the park either. Arsenal won 26 games and drew 12. This reflects that every match day wasn’t
primarily about playing good football, sometimes, grinding out results, as seen a dozen times that term, was equally important.
Warning of Arsenal’s potential habit of being complacent when in the driving seat – the recent North-London derby could be an excellent example that saw the Gunners leading 2-0 at a time and then going on to lose the game - here is what the left back had
to say:
"Sometimes it is better to be 1-0 up because everybody is more focused, but when the game becomes more easy at 2-0 maybe people are not doing the right movement or the right pass and minute after minute you can maybe drop the level."
Arsenal should therefore pull up their socks if they wish to be serious title contenders this term.
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