However, Wenger reiterated that Costa would be much better off if he cleaned up his record of indiscipline on the pitch, and insisted that it would not take away from his game. He’s a very strong player.
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But having seen a second-string team win 4-0 at Nottingham Forest in the League Cup in midweek, following a 4-1 success at Hull last weekend, Wenger is confident the depth of his squad will help restore order after a sluggish start to the season. “And that makes him more risky”, the Guardian quoted Wenger as saying. I like the qualities of the player. “I am happy. I think this is my real dream”.
The Arsenal boss also revealed that he would have tried to sign the 32 million pound-Chelsea striker in 2014 had he known he was ready to leave Atletico Madrid.
“He is a fighter and you respect that”.
“You want full commitment from every single player”.
Asked if it was correct that he once said he wanted to break Wenger’s face, Mourinho said: “No, I met Arsene Wenger a couple of weeks ago and like civilized people we shook hands, we sat on the same table”.
“He has a great reputation and I played against him, but I was a footballer [not a manager] and it was fantastic”.
“That [quickly adapting to the Premier League] is because the directors of football [Txiki Begiristain and Ferran Soriano] are Spanish and they bought a lot of players who are used to this idea of football and these tactics”.
In both of Jose Mourinho’s spells at Chelsea, the Gunners played their London rivals 15 times and won just once – the 2015 Community Shield.
Terry would likely have started had he been fit, with Conte admitting that he missed his leadership after Chelsea’s defeat to Liverpool, but it finally appears time for Fabregas to make his first Premier League start of the season.
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Commenting on Arsenal’s approach to the game, the Frenchman said, “We have to be completely cold-blooded, focus on the game and not respond”. Past year we were a bit unlucky at Chelsea to be down to 10 men because we got a red card and it was rescinded after. “Discipline and results are strongly linked”.
