Gunners dig in for long haul

SOL CAMPBELL insisted that Arsenal were no pushovers as he warned their title rivals that the Gunners are ready to embark on another long unbeaten run.

Arsene Wenger said that he had recently become slightly concerned at his players’ concentration levels as they slipped to seven defeats in 15 games.

However, he now believes that a corner has been turned, most notably since his side’s 2-0 defeat at Old Trafford.

They have since gone three games unbeaten and their weekend win against Middlesbrough ensured they would be top on Christmas Day.

Campbell feels that there is considerable room for optimism as the new year approaches, despite a tough festive programme against West Brom, Liverpool and Chelsea.

This time last year, Arsenal succumbed to a home defeat by Newcastle but showed the character to recover by embarking on an unbeaten league run all the way to the double.

Campbell does not wish to tempt fate, but he sees no reason why they cannot similarly respond to the hurt of their defeat by Manchester United by cementing their place at the top of the table with another consistent run.

“I don’t think we’ve been at our best but it’s the sign of a good team to keep on picking up points,” he declared. “We’ve had teams throwing everything at us, including the kitchen sink, but we’re still top of the league.

“We recognise that we can’t get carried away with things and we’ve got some tough games coming up. It’s an important time because we’re playing teams in and around us in Liverpool and Chelsea, and West Brom, who are fighting for their lives.

“But all the players are ready for what we have to do now. The hunger is still there and so is the ambition, for all of us. We want to win. We know the other teams behind us will be pushing us but that will help us to respond.

“Losing the way we did at United hurt all of us as a squad. I didn’t play but I know how the lads felt. On that day, it went United’s way. They fought well and put their feet in, and deserved to win. But there’s a long way to go.

“I think the players are ready to do what they did at this time last year and go on a good run.

Campbell, who opened the scoring against Boro, rejected suggestions by former Tottenham team-mate Steffen Freund that the key to defeating Arsenal was out muscling them.

“Everybody is pushing us now, and it’s up to us to respond by pushing ourselves,” he declared.

“Battling is all part of football. You know there will be games when you’re pressed but we’re a strong outfit. You don’t go all the way we have over the last two seasons by being pushovers, and we’re not.

“You only have to look at players like Patrick Vieira and Martin Keown to see that they’re not afraid to be physical when we have to be.”

Campbell was delighted to have scored his first goal of the season against Boro, a diving header from Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s free-kick just before half-time. “It has got my name on the scoring list and it came at a vital time as well. It gave us a lift and made them drop a bit, so it was a killer blow,” he said.

Wenger, who hopes to have Vieira and Dennis Bergkamp back on St Stephen’s Day, believes his side are close to their best form again, but has had his worries recently.

“The concentration was high even when it was difficult. The team had the right attitude. Of course there’s a long way to go and we have decided to go from game to game,” he said.

“I’ve been slightly concerned when it was a little bit going the other way. Of course that’s down to concentration. You look at how you lose games and think maybe we need to focus better.

“The players realise that as well. It’s not down to physical commitment. This team is outstanding physically.

“It’s just sometimes difficult to maintain the level of concentration and commitment for 11 months. You have sub-conscious blips, but when you realise that, you assess it and it comes back.”