Arsene Wenger insists there is no reason for Arsenal to panic after third draw

By Gerard Brand

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger doesn't think his side are going through a dip in form. They drew 2-2 with PSG in the Champions League on Wednesday

Arsene Wenger insists there is no reason for Arsenal to panic after their third straight draw left them with an uphill task to finish top of their Champions League group.

The 2-2 draw with PSG at the Emirates on Wednesday night means the French side are in pole position to finish top of Group A, meaning Arsenal will likely face a tough opponent in the last 16.

Wenger says that while the club have lost their winning momentum slightly, there is still a "special spirit" in the squad, and there is no reason to think they are stuttering.

Image: Wenger insists there is no reason for Arsenal to panic after their third straight draw

"We have not lost, but we have lost winning momentum a little bit," Wenger said. "But we played against a good team tonight as well.

"I think we have a special spirit in the squad. We are unbeaten in 18 games, and sometimes you go through a bit of a spell. It's down to us to continue without losing a game but also transform the draws into wins. But we have no reason to panic.

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"At the moment, we are second but it's not over. We have a 90 per cent chance to finish second but at the moment we have not lost a game in this group and overall we have done the job well.

"Will it be enough to finish first? I don't know. Will it be bad or good for us? I think we have to wait for the draw. For me what is more disappointing is that we wanted to win the game and we didn't win it."

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Image: Lucas equalised late on to secure a point for PSG

Arsenal went 2-1 ahead in the second half through a Marco Verratti own goal, but Lucas Moura's late equaliser means the Gunners face finishing second in their group for a sixth time in seven seasons.

"We had a very strong start in the second half, we were dominant," added Wenger. "We went 2-1 up and we dropped off. They maintained the pressure and we paid for that.

"We were a bit passive on the corner but it's 2-2. It's disappointing when we were 2-1 up but we played against a good team with top technical quality and that's it.

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"It was difficult for us to find the right positioning on the pitch from the start because we were a bit hesitant to play high up and work them deep. We were a bit in between the two and that's never good."

Arsenal host Bournemouth in the Premier League on Super Sunday, live on Sky Sports 1 HD from 2pm. Following their EFL Cup quarter-final at home to Southampton next Wednesday and a league trip to West Ham on Saturday, December 3, the Gunners travel to Basel to complete their Champions League Group A fixtures the following Tuesday.

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