Arsenal must get gritty to win the title: Walcott

May 25, 2009

LONDON (AFP) – Theo Walcott admits Arsenal have to add a layer of steel to their silky passing game if they are to become serious contenders for the Premier League title.

Arsene Wenger’s team finished 18 points behind champions Manchester United and never looked able to mount a concerted challenge for first place.

The Gunners ended the season relieved to have come fourth after Aston Villa for a while threatened to knock them out of the Champions League places.

But even that consolation couldn’t paper over the cracks at the Emirates Stadium as fans criticised Wenger openly for the first time in his 13-year reign.

Four seasons without silverware has led some to accuse Wenger of concentrating on developing talented youngsters at the expense of building a battle-hardened team.

Even Walcott, one of those starlets nurtured by Wenger, concedes Arsenal have to get tougher to compete with United, Liverpool and Chelsea.

“We have got to take this into next season now, bounce back and put in a good performance,” England winger Walcott said.

“We are scoring goals from all sorts of positions, the team is playing very well and are keeping the ball without conceding many goals.

“We have to learn from our experiences this year, do the dirty work and get the results.”

Walcott added: “Man United only won one game out of their matches against the top four, so it just shows how important every game is in the Premier League.

“The little clubs, away and at home, they are the points you have to make up.

“We have to do the dirty work, like we have learned from this year, and take that into next season.”

Wenger has some serious thinking to do as he looks to get Arsenal back within touching distance of United.

The future of unsettled Togo striker Emmanuel Adebayor – said to be interesting Manchester City, Chelsea and AC Milan – remains unclear, and he could be sold off to add some reported 20 million pounds to the transfer kitty.

Wenger said: “We do have one or two transfer targets in mind that we want to bring in.

“At the moment we are analysing every position in the squad, analysing the potential of the players we have, and also the improvements that they can make for next season.

“Basically we have a team that is on the way up, and we have to take that into account as well.”

He added: “We are very sorry that we have not won a trophy, but many clubs would be proud of our record of the last four years.

“If you consider the investment we have made in the last few years, and the quality of football we have shown, we do not have to be ashamed.

“The club is going in the right direction and we have to be strong enough to continue it.”

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