Wenger tips young charges to take the Premiership title

Gunners’ boss says spirits are high, despite facing first season without Henry

ARSENAL chief Arsene Wenger begins life without Thierry Henry  this weekend confident that the players his former star striker left behind can challenge for trophies.
The Gunners kick-off the new season with a home fixture against Fulham on Sunday and all eyes will be on a forward line missing its star striker, now sunning himself with his new pals Ronaldinho and Lionel Messi at Barcelona.
Will Henry miss the crunching tackles of a London derby? Probably not. But Wenger believes the players still in red and white are raring to go.
He said: “Overall I am pleased with the performance of the team in pre-season. We have built up our belief and confidence. There is a great solidarity in the squad now.”
It is undeniable that the pre-season form, the first without Henry in eight years, has been promising with wins against Ajax, Paris Saint-Germain Inter Milan and Lazio... and Barnet.
Wenger added:  “It is important that we kept the belief high and the spirit high, and good results in the friendlies have helped that. We believe we have a chance to fight for the title.”
This time last season, Arsenal got off to an awful start. The grand opening at the Emirates Stadium saw lacklustre draws against Aston Villa and Middlesbrough, while defeats at Manchester City and West Ham virtually stuffed their chances of competing for the title inside the first month of action.
Wenger remembers that dreadful start and is desparate to avoid similar mistakes this time around. In theory, the first four fixtures against Fulham, Manchester City, Blackburn Rovers and Portsmouth shouldn’t be the most daunting tasks but it is vital that Arsenal get off to a flyer.
Wenger expects William Gallas, the defender he snatched from Chelsea in the deal that saw Ashley Cole desert Arsenal, to help steady the ship. He may even be asked to support the attack as the club aims to cut down on wastefulness in front of goal – one of the main problems that undermined Arsenal’s title chase in the last two seasons.
Wenger said: “It was good to see Kolo Toure and William Gallas pushing forward (in the friendlies). I have encouraged them to do that because we want to be positive. We needed the defenders to make a difference and, of course, Gael (Clichy, full-back) made the goal for Robin (Van Persie) against Ajax.”
Gallas said on Tuesday: “The young players are professionals and they have had one more year’s experience behind them.”