Arsene Wenger believes Arsenal’s emphatic 5-2 derby victory over near neighbours Tottenham Hotspur can help transform their faltering season.
Wenger has refused to rule his side out of the Premier League title race despite them losing ground on the leading group in recent weeks.
But he concedes his team have suffered a drop in confidence and hopes Saturday’s comprehensive win over Andre Villas-Boas’ Spurs side represents a significant step forward.
Arsenal have twice squandered two-goal leads in recent weeks, against Schalke and Fulham, and were out-played by Manchester United at Old Trafford in a 2-1 defeat.
But after his players again showed signs of nerves despite controlling the game in the wake of Emmanuel Adebayor’s 18th-minute dismissal, the Gunners manager expects his side to build on this morale-boosting win.
“I felt with the two results we had against Schalke and against Manchester United, our confidence level dropped and because we are a team that likes to go forward, when your confidence drops, you game suffers straight away,” said Wenger.
“So it was important to get back to positive results to get back to our level. This team is something special. They want to do well and they have quality.
“We have to find stability in our expression and we need more time to work on that but there is something special in the team. But we are off the top and we have not much time to improve.”
Adebayor put Spurs ahead in the 10th minute but Arsenal took charge after their former striker was dismissed for a lunge on Santi Cazorla.
Per Mertesacker, Lukas Podolski and Olivier Giroud scored before the break, Cazorla added another, then Gareth Bale gave Spurs hope at 4-2 before Theo Walcott wrapped things up in added time.
Walcott’s display reinforced his value to the side and, in Wenger’s eyes, confirmed why he hopes the winger’s contract dispute will be resolved soon.
The England international becomes a free agent next summer and Wenger believes he is benefitting from the improved form of striker Giroud.
Wenger said: “I believe he (Theo) is doing very well. I haven’t changed my mind on him. I’ve always said I want to keep him. We haven’t found an agreement yet but we will continue.
“He certainly doesn’t play like someone who wants to go. And I don’t behave like somebody who wants him to go.
“Giroud is someone who has presence in front of goal. He’s a typical centre forward, he has a presence in the box, so you are more encouraged to cross the ball.”
Villas-Boas refused to condemn Adebayor, although he conceded a red card was the correct decision.
And the Tottenham manager drew positives from the performance, despite the heavy defeat.
“We kept control of the possession and we had our chances to attack, too,” he said. “So I’m extremely proud of the players.
“We have been to Man City (and lost 2-1), went to Arsenal, went to Old Trafford (and beat Manchester United 3-2). The results against these teams are similar to last year, apart from the Old Trafford win.
“It puts us in a difficult position at the moment but we have more than a chance to bounce back and into the places where we think we deserve to be, because what we did against these teams is something to make us proud.”
He also praised the performance of Hugo Lloris, who was preferred in goal to Brad Friedel, but insisted the position remains open.
“Both keepers had been excellent in terms of their performance,” said Villas-Boas.
“We have this wonderful situation where we can alter between these two goalkeepers.
“We decided to give Lloris a chance because he has been doing well, too. Brad has been doing well. So this is a situation that can happen during the season.”
Wenger buoyed by 'special' derby victors Arsenal
