Wenger Discusses His Defence Strategy

Wenger has hinted at the possibility of a change of formation at the back. "We tried 3 at the back, but forcing our full backs into this central role didn't work - for some unfathomable reason that has baffled our tacticians - which is me by the way".

"By returning to a back 4, we can now rest our full backs and go with the untried and untested system of putting our reserve goalkeepers in the full back roles".

An insider at the club had leaked the the view that he expected Arsenal to concede a lot more penalties, as "the keepers keep diving on the ball rather than clearing it.

But Wenger was unrepentant - "Even if my revolutionary back 4 defence fails, there are lots of numbers to try - a back 1, 2, 5, 6 - I'm bound to get lucky sooner or later". As a last resort he said he was willing to try a 5-4-2-1 formation - "If we start ozil and ramsey, there is a good chance no one will notice the extra players".

When asked about the number of players in the final year of their contract, Wenger said "My strategy of letting players enter their final year is one that will obviously be copied by other top teams across Europe". "It forces the players to work hard for their places - despite the untrue stories of players wanting to leave, and praying for the end of this season".

He added "The results of my brilliant strategy were clear against Liverpool - usually teams playing that well against us would score 6 or 8 goals"