Arsène Wenger says Saturday’s FA Cup giantkilling spree makes him reluctant to declare Arsenal favourites to win the trophy this season. His team’s 3-2 victory at Brighton & Hove Albion on Sunday made the holders the highest-placed Premier League team to reach the fifth round but the shock eliminations of Chelsea and Manchester City, plus Manchester United and Liverpool’s replays against lower league opposition, mean Wenger is not about to make predictions of glory.
“After yesterday’s results you would be a bit cautious,” said Wenger. “The Cup is the Cup. What we want is to focus on the next round and go through. Last season the most difficult games were not the expected ones. We will fight and we want to retain our Cup but it’s too long to go to say [we are favourites].”
Wenger said the removal of five top-flight teams from the competition on Saturday had served as a “subconscious warning” to Arsenal not to lessen their focus for the trip to Brighton, a team in the bottom half of the Championship. That perhaps contributed to the vibrant start made by his side, who took the lead in the second minute through a goal from Theo Walcott. “The shock results wake you up a bit,” Wenger added.
Walcott was making his first start in over a year as he continued his comeback from knee-ligament damage and the second goal was scored by Mesut Özil, who was also making his first start after a long injury lay-off. Wenger agreed that the performances of both players augured well for his team’s attempts to compete hard not just in the FA Cup but also in the Premier League and Champions League, but stressed the need for his players to keep their focus. “We have good momentum but let’s keep the urgency level very high,” he said. “We know that momentum can die in football if we drop a little bit in football. We have a good opportunity to finish well this season.”
Arsenal expect to bolster their squad further by completing the signing of the Brazilian centre-back Gabriel Paulista from Villarreal. “I think we’ll get it over the line overnight,” said Wenger.