ARSENE WENGER has forgiven Per Mertesacker for the red card against Chelsea which rules him out of tomorrow’s FA Cup tie against Burnley despite TV replays suggesting he was not even looking when he upended Diego Costa.
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| Per Mertesacker (left) was sent off against Chelsea last weekend |
The Arsenal defender arguably cost the Gunners three points as 10 men struggled to compete with Guus Hiddink’s side at the Emirates last Sunday but despite pundits being quick to jump onto the back of the Germany international, Wenger has stood up for his man.
“Ideally I don't want anyone to make a mistake but that is part of defending as well,” he said.
“We were caught on the counter attack and we were of course in a bad position.
“The thing is that it is easy, when you have to explain things on the screen after the game or during the game - anybody that understands a fraction of football can explain that.
"But when you are down on the pitch it happens all so quickly that if you are caught in a bad position for a fraction of a second it is impossible to correct and you have to accept that and live with it.
“We forget as well the number of times Mertesacker saves a goal that didn't happen. "The risk is part of the game and you have to feel comfortable with that. “You learn from defeat and the unfortunate thing is we did not have a bad performance on the day, we had a great spirit, team attitude and response, but we came out of the game feeling we had not played the game because we are down to 10 men and 1-0 down. So of course it is very difficult.”
The risk is part of the game and you have to feel comfortable with that
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