Arsene Wenger: Intensity of Premier League is harming clubs' European results
The affluent English clubs have failed to reach the quarter-finals of Europe’s elite competition in two of the past three seasons
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Arsenal manager Arsène Wenger attributes the failure of English clubs in the Champions League over the past three seasons to the relentless demands of playing in the Premier League.
The recent defeats for Arsenal, Manchester United and Manchester City represented the first time three English clubs had lost their opening Champions League matches. It was another antidote to those who describe the Premier League as the world’s greatest domestic league.
The affluent English clubs have also failed to reach the quarter-finals of Europe’s elite club competition in two of the past three seasons. Chelsea’s 2014 semi-final appearance is an aberration in this period.
“It’s true that mentally you cannot ease off before a Champions League game as some others can,” said Wenger. “For example, Dinamo Zagreb played on Saturday and they took three players off at half-time. I cannot do that in a high-intensity game at Leicester.
“Olympiakos won comfortably on Saturday. They were safe after 20 minutes.
“The Premier League is demanding and consuming energy wise – mentally more than physically. It makes every game very difficult. It demands as well a lot of mental concentration to get it right. But when you’re a big club, you have to live with that.
“Maybe it’s a bit early to come to any conclusions. A second year without us being successful, then it’d be something we would have to analyse deeply.”
Arsenal should progress to the knockout stages for the 16th successive season. They face Greek league champions Olympiakos at the Emirates tonight, trying to make amends for their 2-1 defeat at Dinamo Zagreb.
Arsenal are without Mikel Arteta (muscular problem), Mathieu Flamini (hamstring injury) and Olivier Giroud (suspension).
Olympiakos were cleared to play in the Champions League only after match-fixing allegations made by rivals Panathinaikos were rejected by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). Their president, Vangelis Marinakis, denies all claims he criminally conspired to fix domestic matches.
Playing Olympiakos brings back fond memories for Arsenal winger Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain. Four years ago yesterday, he scored against them as an 18-year-old to become the competition’s youngest scoring Englishman.
He revealed his former England international father, Mark, often tells him to express himself more with the ball. So he plans to use team-mate Alexis Sanchez as a role model. “Self-belief is a massive part of football,” he said. “Alexis has massive self-belief. It’s hard not to learn from him.”
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments