If Arsenal keep grinding out results, Arsene Wenger will not concern himself with their rivals.
With Manchester United and Manchester City looking certain to occupy the top two places in the Premier League this season, it leaves the Gunners fighting Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur, and possibly even Everton, for the two remaining UEFA Champions League spots.
Two Tomas Rosicky goals set Arsenal on their way to three points at West Bromwich Albion on Saturday afternoon, and despite the dismissal of Per Mertesacker and the resulting penalty goal from James Morrison, the Londoners held on for what could be a valuable win.
The Emirates Stadium club are now tucked into third place in the standings, a point behind Spurs who have played the same number of games, and one above Chelsea who entertain Sunderland in their game in hand on Sunday afternoon. But as long as his own players keep on doing the business, Wenger believes he has little to worry about in regards to the form of his rivals.
“I am very pleased, it is three big points. We have 22 points out of the last 27 but we know our target is to continue to do that until the end of the season,” he said on the Sky Sports website. “We know we have one target to win our games, then we don’t have to look at Tottenham or Chelsea.
“If we lose our games, then you have to look at the results of the others. Our attitude is simple, we have to win the games. Can we finish fourth? I believe we will do it. We are ready for the fight and we always tell the players ‘don’t look at everyone else, just focus on ourselves’.”
Since suffering successive defeats against City and Chelsea back in January, Arsenal have gone on to win seven of their last nine matches. Unlike their London rivals, they don’t have the distraction of the UEFA Europa League or, in the case of the Stamford Bridge club, the FA Cup, to contend with.
Another plus for Wenger is that four of their remaining seven matches are at the Emirates, against Norwich City, Everton, Manchester United and Wigan Athletic. Their three away games are at Fulham, Queens Park Rangers, and on the final day of the season, Newcastle United.
