Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger believes the frantic Christmas schedule
can expand the Premier League title charge beyond a two-horse race.
The Gunners trail leaders Chelsea by 15 points and while it appears
to be a straight shootout between Jose Mourinho's side and reigning
champions Manchester City, Wenger insists the landscape can change over
the next week.
Three games in seven days has convinced Wenger that if Arsenal and
those trailing the pacesetters can stitch together a series of results, a
new contender could emerge.
"It can still change. Let's see how the schedule goes over Christmas.
We'll have a much better idea at the beginning of January,'' Wenger
said. "The next three or four games are important. Chelsea will be in
the fight for the title, for sure, but will it only be Chelsea and Man
City?
"Today you can say maybe, but it is still a long way off. Chelsea are
in the Champions League, Man City as well. Then you have the FA Cup and
Chelsea play in the League Cup. There is still a long way to go.
"But what is for sure is that the teams like us and those around us
need to be massively consistent to have a chance of coming back.''
Arsenal topped the table on Jan. 1 of this year only to finish the
season fourth, seven points adrift of City. Wenger denies his team have
regressed, however.
"I don't think we have gone backwards in the quality of our squad
because if you look at the five players that we bought, you cannot say
that one of the five is a failure,'' Wenger said. "I can't deny we are
behind much more than last year, but we have had a depleted squad since
the start of the season and no stability.
"The fact that we got so many important injuries at the back has cost us too much.''
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