Arsene Wenger pleased with response after ‘nightmare’ week

ByEurosport

Updated 08/03/2018 at 21:54 GMT

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has said he is proud of his team after their 2-0 win in Italy against AC Milan in the Europa League.

Arsenal's coach Arsene Wenger from France looks on during the UEFA Europa League round of 16 first-leg football match AC Milan Vs Arsenal at the 'San Siro Stadium' in Milan on March 8, 2018

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The Gunners came into the match on the back of four defeats in a row in all competitions but they got off the perfect start when Henrikh Mkhitaryan’s effort deflected past Gianluigi Donnarumma.

Aaron Ramsey added a second before half-time and Arsenal go into the second-leg with two crucial away goals.

Arsenal coach Arsene Wenger exchanges words with assistant coach Steve Bould during the UEFA Europa League Round of 16 match between AC Milan and Arsenal at the San Siro on March 8, 2018 in Milan, Italy.

Image credit: Getty Images

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Speaking after the game Wenger discussed his team’s tough period and how they did well to respond.

“It is an important win of course after we had a nightmare week.” Wenger said.

Overall it is important to win, but it is not qualification. We have to finish the job at home. I am happy with the spirit and response we gave.

“We were not in a position to take risks, but we could not be too cautious as you lose fluidity. We defended with resilience until the end.

AC Milan vs Arsenal - San Siro, Milan, Italy - March 8, 2018 AC Milan coach Gennaro Gattuso and Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger before the match

Image credit: Getty Images

“When you play in a cup final it is hard to digest in a few days. When you are knocked down like a boxer you don’t have time to react and you are only halfway up, but you have to respond. Your pride and desire to show quality has to come through in the game.”

By contrast his counter-part Gennaro Gattuso was left disappointed with his team’s display saying that they were not a team.

“We knew this was going to be a very difficult match,” Gattuso told reporters at his press conference.

“Arsenal were coming off a tough moment, but have enormous quality at their disposal, while we made too many mistakes. We never played like a united team and Arsenal deserved the victory.

“We could’ve done more, but we didn’t play as a team, so every time they attacked, it was a danger. Playing at this level is new to many of these lads, so we look forward without losing confidence. It was an off day and Arsenal deserved it. We’ll learn from this.

AC Milan coach Gennaro Gattuso gestures during UEFA Europa League Round of 16 match between AC Milan and Arsenal at the San Siro on March 8, 2018 in Milan, Italy.

Image credit: Getty Images

“Our minds now go to Genoa, then after that we’ll start to prepare for the second leg in London. You can never say never in football, so we’ll go there and give it our best. We are certainly not going to the Emirates on a day trip.

“We are Milan and have a jersey to respect. We could’ve scored tonight, it’s not over yet, but it’s difficult. We’ll give it our best shot.

“I expected Wenger to approach the game this way and it was our mistake giving Arsenal too much space. We allowed them to burst through our lines too easily and were always a man short.

“This result owes a lot to Arsenal and a lot to our own errors.”

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