Arsenal defender Gael Clichy claims the side are still in the title hunt and can make up ground on the top two despite their latest defeat.
The French full back played as Arsenal followed up their defeat to Manchester United by going down to two Didier Drogba goals at Stamford Bridge.
After the defeat the Gunners are nine points behind league leaders Chelsea and face a crucial match midweek against Liverpool, a side they are currently five points ahead of.
Defeat for Arsenal would see them face a battle to hold on to third place and not battling for the Premier League title as they were a few weeks ago.
Clichy pointed out that Arsenal made up ground on the leaders earlier in the season after being written off and he insists the side will fight to get back into the battle at the top.
“It is not going to be easy but it is not finished. We were 11 points behind and came back so we have to hope they drop points and make sure we don’t drop any points,” said the French defender.
According to Clichy a long run of wins might not be needed and games should be looked at one at a time starting with Liverpool, and added that “the less we lose, the better it will be”.
One man who disagrees with Clichy’s views is Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech, who after his side’s 2-0 win said Arsenal are now out of the Premier League title race.
The Czech international told Chelsea’s website that it will be “very difficult” for the Gunners to make up the nine-point gap and he is now keeping his sights firmly pinned on second-placed Manchester United.
Indeed, the Premier League betting odds seem to suggest that Arsenal should be looking over their shoulders to avoid being caught by Liverpool and Man City.
Arsene Wenger believes Sol Campbell’s first game back in an Arsenal shirt gives him cause for encouragement as the Premier League title battle progresses.
The former England defender was recently re-signed by Wenger and he made his first appearance for the club since the 2006 Champions League final in Arsenal’s 3-1 FA Cup defeat against Stoke at the weekend.
Wenger said the performance of Campbell was the sole bright spot to come out of the defeat, in which two goals from Ricardo Fuller and one from Dean Whitehead dumped Arsenal out of the cup.
“Sol had a good game. Considering he has not played for five months, I felt he did very well under the circumstances,” said the French manager.
“He has a future in the Premier League. He has motivation now and has been training very well. His reward was to be back in the side.”
Campbell’s experience may be called upon in coming weeks as Arsenal face crucial Premier League matches against Aston Villa, Manchester United, Chelsea and Liverpool in succession.
One man who will not feature in any of those games is young defender Keiran Gibbs, who has been ruled out for the rest of the season after being forced to have surgery on a foot injury.
Although the football odds suggest Arsenal face a tough task in winning the title, good results in these four matches will boost their chances massively.
Arsene Wenger has said he is happy with where his side currently are in the English Premier League battle.
The Arsenal boss sees his side sitting in third place in the Premier League, three points behind leaders Chelsea, and two off Manchester United who have played a game more.
However, Arsenal failed to make up ground on their rivals this weekend as a late Tomas Rosicky equaliser was needed to snatch a 2-2 draw at home to Everton.
The loss of points was softened as United could only manage a draw against Birmingham, but Wenger has admitted the absence of Alex Song for the Everton game was a blow to the team.
Song has departed for the African Cup of Nations and the French boss said it was a similar situation to when Arsenal lost Robin van Persie, and that the team needs time to “find a new balance”.
However, he remains happy that Arsenal are still embroiled in the battle to win the Premier League title this season.
“Before the season of course, I would have signed to be this close in the race at this stage,” said Wenger.
“But you could see from Saturday that every game is difficult and as soon as you drop your level a little bit you are in danger.”
Wenger recently said that he could be looking for a new striker during the January transfer window as van Persie is a long-term injury victim and there are also fears over Nicklas Bendtner.
Ryan Babel was a Wenger transfer target in the summer of 2007. The press were reporting that it was a done deal, that Ryan would be joining Arsenal in a matter of weeks. However, the deal fell through, and it looked like the Ajax player would remain in Amsterdam, that was until Rafa Benitez came in with an £11.5 million bid which took Ryan to Liverpool.
This season Babel has been a much maligned character in the Liverpool team and there are hints of a transfer out of the club, albeit ruled out by Rafa. He has played poorly and £11.5 million looks expensive.
Babel is a fine example of a young player with talent being linked with Arsenal, but at the wrong price. It could be argued that he is a useful player, but I would say that is not worth £11.5 million, for what could have been another Reyes.
From this we can conclude that it would be rash to plunge headlong into this January transfer window and throw money at problems within the team. As we have seen from the emergence of players such as Alex Song, the potential within the club for the team to evolve and grow is great.
Great clubs need great players, but maintaining balance within the team is of utmost importance. Wenger could splash the cash on players – but that means the risk of a flop. I would agree with Wenger – if a player of special quality comes up then bring him in, but spending money for the sake of it makes no sense.
Arsenal’s ambition to upset the football odds and win the Premier League in years to come could be improved by loaning out some of their current crop of youngsters.
Arsene Wenger has been speaking about the possibility of loaning out 17-year-old midfield prospect Jack Wilshere to Premier League rivals Burnley.
The French manager said he is always willing to let his young stars leave the Emirates Stadium on short-term deals if they are guaranteed games at their new club.
He identified the time a young Ashley Cole spent three months at Crystal Palace in 2000 as proof such a loan period can benefit young footballers.
Wenger said: ” [A loan spell] is like a finishing school. It is what we call a post-education experience.
“The spell at Palace really gave Ashley the needed confidence and convinced everybody that he could play at the top level because he adapted straight away. Ten years later you think it was not a coincidence.”
Wenger has moved to quash speculation that he is looking to make a bid for Manchester City striker Craig Bellamy in the January transfer window to aid Arsenal’s Premier League title bid this season.
