Wenger’s side had not won in the Premier League since October 31 and have been wracked by injuries to key personnel, including Alexis Sanchez and Santi Cazorla.
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However, Arsenal eventually broke the deadlock with their first chance in the 33rd minute as Mesut Ozil teed up Joel Campbell, who slotted home with a fine finish.
“I knew Sunderland would be very good on the day at counter-attacks and free-kicks so we played to not give many free-kicks away”.
ARSENE Wenger this evening (Saturday) hailed an “important win” for Arsenal after they overcame a battling Sunderland side in a crucial 3-1 victory.
Arsenal moved up to second in the Premier League table after 3-1 win over relegation-threatened Sunderland.
“I’ve been here (at Arsenal) with Bolton, Blackburn, West Ham and Newcastle and I’ve never been here and created as many chances with a team than we created today, that’s for sure”, he told reporters.
Sunderland’s revival in recent weeks coupled with Arsenal’s upcoming Champions League game may also play a part in how Wenger sets up his side on Saturday.
Sunderland had missed an early chance to take the lead when they caught Arsenal on the break and Duncan Watmore fed Fabio Borini only for the former Liverpool forward to shoot straight at Petr Cech. “All was not ideal of course, but the team have shown mental strength after a goal before halftime”.
Sunderland’s efforts were rewarded after Olivier Giroud allowed them back into the game just before half-time, shinning Yann M’Vila’s free-kick past Čech into the back of his own net.
He said: “We’ve gone a long way to trying to get our way out of the position that we’re in but we’ve still a long way to go”.
I was encouraged by the performance, but saddened that the players didn’t have their shooting boots on.
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“It’s always a disappointment to lose the players at an important moment of the season”, said Wenger.
