Arsene Wenger met with the press on Friday morning ahead of his side’s game against Chelsea at the Emirates on Saturday.
Despite journalists trying to get him to talk about Jose Mourinho, a figure who has nothing to do with this game, the Arsenal manager did his best to keep the conversation focused on the game ahead.
Speaking about which team had the edge for this match, Wenger admitted that Chelsea had dominated recently, but was quick to point out that the Gunners finished second, behind only Leicester last season.
“I would like to think we have improved and that’s what we have to show,” Wenger told reporters.
“I think last year we finished second in the league and the first team was Leicester, so we have narrowed the difference between us and all the other teams.
“It’s a new start, it’s a new opportunity for everybody and we have to show that we can continue our progress.”
Wenger also identified three Chelsea men that his side will need to keep quiet if they are to win the game.
“They have always come to the Emirates with a strong defensive solidity to catch us on the break because they know we like to take the initiative,” Wenger said.
“Conte has very strong players on the transition, like Hazard, like Willian, like Diego Costa.
“Certainly for us to stop those three players being dangerous will be one of the keys of the game.”
Speaking of Costa, Wenger was also asked about how important it will be to maintain their discipline in this match, urging his side to “focus on your game and don’t respond” to the cheaty one.
He added, “We talk about that [the importance of discipline] because in the last two games we played against Chelsea with ten men so of course for the result tomorrow it will be important the way we play football but as well the way we behave because discipline and results are strongly linked and the regrets we had in the last two games we couldn’t play with 11 against 11.”