Confidence the key to young Gunners’ late shows, reveals Song

MIDFIELDER Alex Song believes Arsenal are scoring late goals this season because they are sticking to their footballing principles.

Nicklas Bendtner’s last-gasp winner at Hull on Saturday was the team’s sixth strike in the 90th minute or later in their last five games.

Song missed the match through suspension but celebrated the goal “like crazy”.

The Cameroon international credited the philosophy of Arsene Wenger for his team’s heart-stopping antics.

“The manager trusts us to do the job,” he said. “If the referee says we have four minutes left then the boss says ‘don’t panic, be confident and play’. That means if the opposition drop we have the chance to score.

“If the game is not finished we know we can score at anytime.”

Song watched the Hull encounter at home with his family.

“I was like a crazy man,” he said. “I jumped everywhere. I was watching it with my son and he did not know what was happening. But when Nicklas scored I just said ‘yeeeeeessssssss’.

“It is very difficult to watch your friends when you don’t play. But I had confidence in my team. We have the players to come in and do well.

“And now we are in a strong position and we will fight in the games that are left.

“The mentality has changed for us. Everyone has in their head that we need to do something this year. It is very important for us.”

Theo Walcott has emerged as an important player for Arsenal in recent games, and will play an even bigger role in the coming weeks, according to former Gunners star Ray Parlour.

The former Arsenal midfielder even drew similarities between the England international, 21 today, and David Beckham during the peak of his career.

Walcott has recently rediscoverd his form after receiving criticism for some of his performances while returning from a string of injuries during the first six months of his season.

“Players like Theo Walcott have massive potential,” said Parlour. “I would not say he has had a bad season it is just that he has not had a run in the team.

“Against Burnley, he was brilliant. But if you are going to be a big player you need to do that week in week out at a consistent level.”

* ARSENAL youngster Armand Traore believes he will eventually play for Paris St Germain, the “club of his dreams”, although he admits a move this summer would be too early.

Traore moved to Arsenal from Monaco in 2006 and, having spent last year on loan at Portsmouth, is now beginning to prove himself at the Emirates, the 20-year-old emerging as first-choice understudy to compatriot Gael Clichy in the left-back role.

However, Traore admits he would love to move back to Paris, where he was born.

“PSG will always be PSG,” he told Le Parisien.

“It’s the club of my dreams and I know that I will play there one day.

“If people from PSG contact me this summer, I would listen to what they have to say. But I think it’s too early for me to go to PSG. I prefer to stay longer in England. But God willing, I’ll come there later. I really want it.”