MX23RW : Wednesday, May 22 00:06:59| >> :120:6047:6047:
[monks data]
Aston Villa logo
Premier League
Jan 13, 2014 at 8pm UK
 
Arsenal logo

1-2

Benteke (76')
FT(HT: 0-2)
Wilshere (34'), Giroud (35')

Arsene Wenger: 'It was a fighting performance'

Arsene Wenger praises both the footballing and battling qualities that top-of-the-table Arsenal displayed in their 2-1 victory over Aston Villa in the West Midlands.

Arsene Wenger praised the toughness of his players after Arsenal survived an Aston Villa comeback to win 2-1 and move back to the top of the Premier League.

Goals from Jack Wilshere and Olivier Giroud inside the space of a minute had put the Gunners 2-0 to the good, but Christian Benteke's first goal since September forced them to defend stubbornly in the final stages.

Wenger feels that his side showed the right balance of footballing skill and fight to come away from Villa Park victorious, but is still stressing that Arsenal will not get carried away in their pursuit of the title.

"Let's take care of our performances," he told Sky Sports News. "Then, you have to go forward always and get points, and see if you can make a difference with other teams.

"In the first half, we were more about playing, and the second half we were more about fighting. We needed a very good, resilient performance in the second half."

"We got the answer, even if maybe we had some dangerous situations in front of goal. They made it very physical, put the ball high up in the air and played with three through the middle."

Arsenal host Fulham next Saturday before welcoming League One Coventry City in the FA Cup.

ID:130237: cacheID:130237:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:2562:No Data Analysis info
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Olivier Giroud of Arsenal scores their second goal past Brad Guzan of Aston Villa during the Barclays Premier League match on January 13, 2014
Read Next:
Match Analysis: Aston Villa 1-2 Arsenal
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
CManchester CityMan City38287396346291
2Arsenal38285591296289
3Liverpool382410486414582
4Aston Villa382081076611568
5Tottenham HotspurSpurs382061274611366
6Chelsea381891177631463
7Newcastle UnitedNewcastle381861485622360
8Manchester UnitedMan Utd38186145758-160
9West Ham UnitedWest Ham381410146074-1452
10Crystal Palace381310155758-149
11Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton381212145562-748
12Bournemouth38139165467-1348
13Fulham38138175561-647
14Wolverhampton WanderersWolves38137185065-1546
15Everton38139164051-1140
16Brentford38109195665-939
17Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest3899204967-1832
RLuton TownLuton3868245285-3326
RBurnley3859244178-3724
RSheffield UnitedSheff Utd38372835104-6916


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!