Arsene Wenger admits Arsenal's top-four fate remains out of their own hands

Even if Arsenal win their remaining four fixtures, they have to hope that either Manchester City or Liverpool drop points before the end of the Premier League season

Wenger had never previously beaten Mourinho in a competitive fixture (Getty)

Arsene Wenger admitted that Arsenal’s race for Champions League football is still out of their hands, even after his first ever defeat of Jose Mourinho in competitive football.

Arsenal beat Manchester United 2-0 on Sunday afternoon but are still stuck in sixth place in the Premier League table. They still have four league games left this season: Southampton away on Wednesday, Stoke City away on Saturday, Sunderland at home next Tuesday then Everton at home on final day.

Even if Arsenal win all four they will finish the season on 75 points. They would need Liverpool or Manchester City to drop points to allow them to make it into fourth place.

So Wenger did not allow himself to be too optimistic following one of Arsenal’s best performances of the last few months. He is hoping his players can perform at the same level when they go to St Mary’s in midweek.

“We have a big game on Wednesday night,” Wenger said. “Southampton are a good team technically and they collectively play well. We need to be calm and focused. We still have a chance mathematically and we need some help form teams around us.”

Wenger said that this game was a must-win for his players but he was proud of how they came through it and praised their ‘stability’.

“It was important [to win],” Wenger said. “We lost at Tottenham, which did not happen many times. Overall, when you play Manchester United, you cannot afford to lose.

“We won at Middlesbrough, we won against Man City in the Cup, we won against Leicester, and we won today. It was a bit physical bit we look a bit more stable.”

Wenger was pleased with his team's battling performance (Getty)

Wenger was pleased with how his Arsenal team dug in and delivered one week after a bad defeat at White Hart Lane. “We needed to be patient,” Wenger said.

“I felt to go in at half-time at 0-0 gave us a chance to win because we started a bit nervous and under pressure. Slowly we became better and in the second half controlled well the game. The first goal was quite lucky, the second goal was a great goal.”