Arsene Wenger: ‘Arsenal can win the league’

Arsenal coach Arsene Wenger has rubbished the suggestion that his side don’t have the right mentality to challenge for the Premier League title and has backed his side to win the championship this season.

Arsenal have played down fears that injured England midfielder Jack Wilshere could miss next year’s European championship finals, with manager Arsene Wenger saying on Wednesday he expected the player to return in February. “I think as well that he is happy here and I’m sure until the end of the season he will play more games”.

“If you have that everybody will say it’s boring and it is better you have the situation we have today where seven or eight teams can win it”, he added.

There is a growing body of evidence that suggests this season could finally be the one in which Arsenal finally win the Premier League.

As you no doubt know, Petr Cech set a Premier League record yesterday with his 170th clean sheet, eclipsing David James’ record, which had stood since 2010.

It has been a good end of year for the north London club who have jumped above all their title rivals, despite a blip on the south coast on Boxing Day with a 4-0 defeat at Southampton.

The Gunners will begin 2016 by hosting Newcastle United at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday.

“How do you measure [the best title race]?” “I could rest him more if I had these players because Wilshere can play there and Cazorla can play there”.

The player’s performances in recent months have been a far cry from those when he first arrived – a time when he would often disappear for whole games in the action packed setting that is English football. He wants to play more, of course.

Turkish side Besiktas showed an interest in Ospina earlier this year, and may see him as the ideal reinforcement as they look to secure the Super Lig which they now top. At the start of December, 2015, the Magpies scored back to back wins over Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur, however, they have also been battered by Leicester City, Crystal Palace and were recently out-done by Everton and West Bromwich Albion.