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Wenger concedes title to Blues
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ARSENAL manager Arsene Wenger all but conceded the Premier League title to leader Chelsea after seeing his side let slip a one-goal lead in a 1-2 defeat away to Swansea on Sunday.
Defeat left the Gunners 12 points behind Jose Mourinho’s table-toppers after only 11 league games played. There might be more than two-thirds of the season left and the small matter of 81 points to play for, but Wenger believes Arsenal’s London rival is unstoppable.
“At the moment Chelsea are on course for 100 points this season,” said Wenger, who won the last of his three Premier League title as Gunners boss during the 2003/04 season.
“If you look at the number of points they have today, if they keep that up nobody will catch them, that’s for sure,” the Frenchman added. “There doesn’t look to be anybody capable to challenge them at the moment.”
Having relinquished a three-goal lead at home to Anderlecht during a 3-3 Champions League in midweek, the Gunners’ defensive frailties were on display again in south Wales.
Alexis Sanchez gave Arsenal a 63rd-minute lead at the Liberty Stadium, but two goals in three minutes in the final quarter, from Gylfi Sigurdsson and substitute Bafetimbi Gomis, left Wenger empty-handed.
“I think it’s a game that we were quite in control of at 1-0,” Wenger said. “But I felt that we allowed them back into the game by losing some challenges in the middle of the park. You cannot afford to lose them.
“It’s unfortunate to lose a game like that but we were not rigorous until the end.
“We produced quite a decent performance for 75 minutes but you have to last for 90 minutes. It’s disappointing but we have to take it on the chin. But give Swansea credit ... Swansea are a good team.”
Spurs also lost 1-2 to Stoke to fall to 12th in the standings and increase the scrutiny on new manager Mauricio Pochettino.
Young Spanish striker Ayoze Perez scored for a third straight game to set Newcastle on its way to a 2-0 win at West Brom. Argentine defender Fabricio Coloccino headed in the second goal. Everton drew 1-1 at Sunderland and is in 10th place, tied on 14 points with Merseyside rival Liverpool.
In Germany, Christoph Kramer’s bizarre own goal gave Borussia Dortmund a 1-0 win over Borussia Moenchengladbach to end the side’s five-game losing streak and lift it out of the Bundesliga’s relegation zone.
In Italy, Carlos Tevez scored a stunning goal to help Juventus crush Parma 7-0 and retain its three-point advantage over Roma, which eased to a 3-0 win at home to Torino.
Goals by Carlos Vela and Imanol Agirretxe gave lowly Real Sociedad a 2-1 home win against 10-man defending champions Atletico Madrid in the Spanish League.
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