Arsene Wenger was in a buoyant mood after Arsenal‘s 2-0 victory over Middlesbrough.
On Sanchez he said: “He had a good performance. I think he became stronger as the game went on but because I took a gamble with him, I took him off with 20 minutes to go. He needed the game as well,” he told the press at the press conference.
Questioned on whether Sanchez is now more himself [after recent quotes] Wenger responded: “Yes. He didn’t miss too many games and what was important for him was to get through the game without injury.”
On Jack Wilshere: “He’s two weeks ahead of schedule. I had a hesitation to put him on the bench today but I thought I wanted him to have one more week of training at least.”
On the win: “We controlled the game from the first to the last minute. They had one chance at the end from a header, but overall I’m pleased with the way we attacked, the way we defended and with the way we played together with a good focus for 90 minutes. That’s basically it.”
On Giroud’s goals: “The first goal is what we try to do in our game and our build-up. The second goal shows that the game belongs to the players as well because it’s a consequence of two players who respond quickly to a situation, analyse it quickly and do what they want to do well. That’s basically what it was. It’s a consequence of intelligence and technique.”
On Giroud: “I believe that he is a different player today than the guy who arrived here for two reasons. One, he understands what top-level football demands, works with a great concentration in training and he has improved tremendously on his mobility, his technical quality and of course his body is very strong. He uses it very well. ”
