Wenger refuses to get carried away after Blackburn drubbing

SaturdayFC Arsenal     7 - 1   BlackburnNorwich City 2 - 0   BoltonQPR               1 - 2   WolvesStoke City      0 - 1  SunderlandWest Brom     1 - 2  Swansea CityWigan             1 - 1  Everton LONDON - Arsene Wenger expressed his pleasure after Arsenal picked up its first three Premier League points of 2012 but refused to get carried away after the 7-1 drubbing of Blackburn Rovers.

Sunday, February 05, 2012

SaturdayFC Arsenal     7 - 1   BlackburnNorwich City 2 - 0   BoltonQPR               1 - 2   WolvesStoke City      0 - 1  SunderlandWest Brom     1 - 2  Swansea CityWigan             1 - 1  EvertonLONDON - Arsene Wenger expressed his pleasure after Arsenal picked up its first three Premier League points of 2012 but refused to get carried away after the 7-1 drubbing of Blackburn Rovers.The Gunners had endured a torrid start to the calendar year, sinking to seventh in the table after losing three games and drawing one before Saturday’s whitewash.The home side emphatically turned the corner against Rovers though, courtesy of eye-catching performances from Robin van Persie and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, who scored a hat trick and brace, respectively, with Mikel Arteta and Thierry Henry completing the rout.For Wenger, though, it was the outcome of the result, rather than its nature which truly counts."I feel that recently we have had good performances but didn’t always get results,” said Wenger. "Today was the performance and the result that we wanted. I do not give much importance to seven goals, just that we won and played well."He added, "We were mature, serious and played together until the end.”Though Van Persie will steal the headlines with his well-taken treble, both Oxlade-Chamberlain and Theo Walcott also caught the eye, flanking the Dutchman to devastating effect.For Wenger, the English duo’s role was integral to the team performance and Van Persie’s cameo, while the Frenchman was quick to note the growing maturity of his young teenager.The win ensures that Arsenal keeps the heat on the Premier League’s front-runners after slipping considerably off the pace in weeks gone by.Keen to safeguard against complacency, Wenger has underlined the importance of building upon today’s result and implementing consistency into the Gunners’ performances."It was important for the confidence of the side that we won and got three points,” he said."The result won't make us win at Sunderland, but the confidence might. We need to continue to play the way we did today."We need consistency. Strangely I don’t feel we played that badly at Fulham, nor at Swansea, nor against Manchester United.

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