WE CAN CLAIM FOURTH - WENGER
Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger backed his players to complete their Champions League mission despite being held to a goalless draw at Newcastle.
The Gunners started the day two points clear of Bolton in fourth place and ended it in exactly the same position after Sam Allardyce's side drew 1-1 with Everton.
Asked if he felt his side - they play Bolton next weekend - would hang on to their place in the top four, Wenger replied: "I feel yes because they (Bolton) had a good opportunity today to come back to us and they played a 1-1 draw against Everton.
"That keeps them a fair distance. It is down to how we do.
"For the club, it is very important, for the players, for everybody inside the club and everybody who loves the club.
"We are used to being there and we want to do it again."
Arsenal might have eased further ahead of their closest challengers had Nolberto Solano not produced a superb double goal-line clearance.
However, James Milner had earlier hit Jens Lehmann's crossbar and the Magpies had strong appeals for a penalty waved away by referee Howard Webb in a late flurry of activity.
But Wenger left the north-east reasonably happy with his lot after seeing his players end a run of three successive Barclays Premiership defeats.
He said: "We wanted to win the game and we could have maybe nicked a 1-0, but they saved one on the line and they could have scored as well at the end.
"Both teams had good defensive performances and it was a game of few chances.
"For us after three defeats, it was important not to lose, and maybe it could be a good point at the end of the season."
However, opposite number Glenn Roeder was furious that Webb had not presented his side with a chance to win the game in injury time when Abou Diaby appeared to wrestle Oguchi Onyewu off the ball from a Milner free-kick despite delaying the set-piece to warn him about his manhandling of the defender.
He said: "Did I think we might have had a penalty? That is the understatement of the year. Shirts get changed at the end of the game, don't they, not during the game?
"Howard Webb is a fine referee, but I saw him do that recently in a Championship game at Leicester.
"It is a rugby tackle and you cannot do that in football, it is not allowed.
"It just needs bravery and courage to blow the whistle and point to the spot and unfortunately, he pulled up short.
"He did that to us earlier this year at Bolton when Peter Ramage was clearly pushed in the back for Bolton's equaliser, and he apologised the next time I saw him.
"He is a fine referee, though, generally, but he will be disappointed in himself when he sees it." More
The Gunners started the day two points clear of Bolton in fourth place and ended it in exactly the same position after Sam Allardyce's side drew 1-1 with Everton.
Asked if he felt his side - they play Bolton next weekend - would hang on to their place in the top four, Wenger replied: "I feel yes because they (Bolton) had a good opportunity today to come back to us and they played a 1-1 draw against Everton.
"That keeps them a fair distance. It is down to how we do.
"For the club, it is very important, for the players, for everybody inside the club and everybody who loves the club.
"We are used to being there and we want to do it again."
Arsenal might have eased further ahead of their closest challengers had Nolberto Solano not produced a superb double goal-line clearance.
However, James Milner had earlier hit Jens Lehmann's crossbar and the Magpies had strong appeals for a penalty waved away by referee Howard Webb in a late flurry of activity.
But Wenger left the north-east reasonably happy with his lot after seeing his players end a run of three successive Barclays Premiership defeats.
He said: "We wanted to win the game and we could have maybe nicked a 1-0, but they saved one on the line and they could have scored as well at the end.
"Both teams had good defensive performances and it was a game of few chances.
"For us after three defeats, it was important not to lose, and maybe it could be a good point at the end of the season."
However, opposite number Glenn Roeder was furious that Webb had not presented his side with a chance to win the game in injury time when Abou Diaby appeared to wrestle Oguchi Onyewu off the ball from a Milner free-kick despite delaying the set-piece to warn him about his manhandling of the defender.
He said: "Did I think we might have had a penalty? That is the understatement of the year. Shirts get changed at the end of the game, don't they, not during the game?
"Howard Webb is a fine referee, but I saw him do that recently in a Championship game at Leicester.
"It is a rugby tackle and you cannot do that in football, it is not allowed.
"It just needs bravery and courage to blow the whistle and point to the spot and unfortunately, he pulled up short.
"He did that to us earlier this year at Bolton when Peter Ramage was clearly pushed in the back for Bolton's equaliser, and he apologised the next time I saw him.
"He is a fine referee, though, generally, but he will be disappointed in himself when he sees it." More
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