Arsenal moved back into the top four on Saturday after claiming a 3-0 win over Burnley to record back-to-back victories for the first time this Premier League season.
Theo Walcott made his long-awaited return from injury, but the star of the show was Alexis Sanchez, who scored twice to set the Gunners on their way against Sean Dyche's visitors. Arsene Wenger was full of praise for his £35 million marvel, per the club's official Twitter account:
Arsenal have looked weary of late, with a lack of midfield and defensive depth standing out as their main issues, but Saturday's display was a result of more confident standing.
Wenger was also eager to hail his team's rounded performance, pointing out patience as being key to their improvement in a bid to not see chances rushed, despite all the pressure upon their shoulders:
A change in formation and tactics has also played a role in recent successes, it seems, with the club shifting away from the 4-3-3 their wing-oriented assets would seem a natural fit for.
Instead, Wenger has placed his faith in a 4-4-2, again praising Sanchez for his ability to make the strategy work thanks to his stellar work rate:
Walcott couldn't make as great an impact as his Chilean teammate upon his return to first-team matters, but the north Londoners' helmsman nonetheless saw positives in the attacker's outing.
Wenger goes on to say that Walcott merely needs playing time before he's back up to speed in the club's campaign:
Burnley remain five points away from safety and are yet to win a Premier League match since returning to the top flight, but Dyche has never been one to discount the opposition in the face of a loss.
That mantra was clear as he joined the bandwagon in praising Sanchez, but insisted one would like to see such results after spending such a large amount of money, per Bleacher Report's James McNicholas:
BBC Sport provides further quotes from Dyche, who is clearly hoping to see more of his players if Premier League survival is to be seen as a realistic goal heading into the new year:
There is a reality to our challenge and that is not the reality, that is the top end of the market. They are a high quality side. They create chances and it could have been more but that is just by the nature of the quality of their players.
We had been solid before Tom Heaton had to make great saves but after they scored they opened the game up. They get in great passing lanes, they have a great shape, they have pace, power and energy but they also have tactical awareness.
It not just about one win. We need more than one win, make no mistake. It has to be. That is the challenge. The improvements are marginal it is the learning curve, it is a high state of learning in the Premier League.
The Gunners will be buoyed by the performance of Callum Chambers, too, who scored one goal and assisted another as he makes his way back to full fitness, hoping that progress can continue for another summer purchase.
The win over Burnley will be seen as encouraging for the Arsenal ranks, but there will be far more difficult opponents to come, starting with Tuesday's home tie against Anderlecht in the Champions League.
//from Bleacher Report http://ift.tt/1DHb06o
via IFTTT November 01, 2014 at 10:58AM
0 comments:
Post a Comment