Petr Cech has admitted Arsene Wenger doesn’t have the same “win it all costs” mentality that Jose Mourinho had at Chelsea, and is hoping he can help bring about a change in philosophy.
Cech enjoyed a lot of success under Mourinho at Chelsea and is understandably a fan of his methods. The Portuguese manager, now in charge of Manchester United, cared little for style and focussed on winning games however he could. It wasn’t pretty, but it was effective.
It’s that method that Cech feels is lacking at Arsenal, who have suffered a number of poor results in the big games in recent years.
“When he [Mourinho] arrived at Chelsea from Porto, he brought the main thing: he came from a club where it was not acceptable to him to finish second of the championship,” he said, reports the Daily Star.
“He brought the same spirit in Chelsea. He thinks only about victory, whatever the price. He hates draws. If we returned to the dressing room with a draw, it was known that he would not be satisfied.
“On the other hand, he also wanted be able to keep a 1-0 or beat a team 5-0 if possible. No matter how, Mourinho wants the result.
“The philosophy at Arsenal is completely opposed to this: it is not win at all costs but we want to win with a good way of playing. This is beginning to change in our approach.”
Arsenal have compromised their “style first” approach in the past. Last season, we adopted a more defensive approach to our games against Manchester City and Chelsea in the FA Cup and won both.
It certain circumstances, Wenger does send Arsenal out to be more defensive and secure an ugly win. However, it is true the Gunners have gone into games trying to play an open, expansive style and have been punished for it.
The Arsenal manager doesn’t always send out a team that can neutralise the opposition like Mourinho. He wants to dominate them. Wenger doesn’t like to change that approach, but it could be necessary to get Arsenal competing near the top of the table again.
Currently sitting 16th in the Premier League after three games of the new season, a change of approach could help turn things around at Arsenal.