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Triumph over north London rivals Tottenham will boost confidence, says Arsène Wenger

Wenger reckons the emphatic derby success can start a run of good form for his side

Monday 19 November 2012 14:10 GMT
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The Gunners came from a goal behind to beat 10-man Spurs at the Emirates
The Gunners came from a goal behind to beat 10-man Spurs at the Emirates (Getty Images)

Arsenal manager Arsène Wenger believes Saturday's 5-2 triumph over local rivals Tottenham can instil confidence in his squad.

The Gunners came from a goal behind to beat 10-man Spurs at the Emirates on Saturday after collecting four points from a possible 12 leading into the clash.

With a draw and a defeat to Schalke in the Champions League also proving disappointing over the last month Wenger reckons the emphatic derby success can start a run of good form for his side.

"The result will help to rebuild belief completely again," he told Arsenal Player.

"There is something special in this team and I am happy that will come out when they play with complete confidence.

"Let's be consistent. We will gain some belief and confidence from this result, and we will transfer that into our next game and show the same performance."

Arsenal's next game comes at home to Montpellier on Wednesday evening where anything other than a victory would leave qualification into the knockout rounds of the Champions League on a knife-edge.

But Wenger has been pleased with the improvements made by his side and believes the defence is getting back towards its best.

"We have shown quality, spirit and a lot of movement, and that is what we want from our team," he said.

"I believe it is always easier to correct the defensive side than getting your team to score goals. When you score goals you always have a chance.

"I am confident that the defence will be quite sound once everybody is used to playing with each other. We won many balls (against Tottenham) as a team and we want to continue to work on that."

Goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny returned from injury in time to face Spurs and believes the victory came at the perfect time for Arsenal as they target progression in Europe following their recent blip.

"We couldn't get a better time to play that game. We are buzzing today, we can't wait for the next game. We're confident," he said.

"We've had a couple of poor results recently, but we're back on track and we're confident that we can get the three points and qualify for the knockout stages, which is the least you can ask from us - We want to make sure we do the job properly and qualify."

Szczesny admitted he was aware of a little unrest amongst Arsenal supporters but praised them for the way they backed the side throughout the win over their neighbours.

He said: "I know that over the last few weeks the fans might have been frustrated, and we understand that completely.

"I think the team and the fans work as a unit, and they were fantastic, they helped us to get a boost before the game and helped keep us going."

It was confirmed today that Gunners' midfielder Emmanuel Frimpong has completed a short-term loan switch to npower Championship side Charlton.

Frimpong, 20, spent a portion of last season on loan at Wolves where he suffered a cruciate knee ligament injury.

The former England youth international has now recovered and will be hoping to use his spell at the Valley as a way of finding his match fitness.

Charlton manager Chris Powell admitted the Addicks had been keeping tabs on Frimpong and was pleased to sign him on a deal that initially runs until the turn of the year.

"We're really happy that he's coming in to join our squad, and we welcome him to the club," he told the club's official website.

"We've had our eye on him for a while, and with the busy Christmas period to come, I felt it was right to make sure that we are covered in all areas. We hope that does very well for us in the red or black of Charlton."

PA

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