Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger feels his side have "come up a level" in recent weeks, but warns there is plenty of hard work ahead if they are to get past AS Monaco and reach the quarter-finals of the Champions League.
Arsenal moved back into the top four of the Premier League on Saturday with a hard-earned 2-1 win at Crystal Palace, where they survived a late onslaught and saw a header from Palace substitute Glenn Murray come back off the post in the dying moments of stoppage time.
Arsenal stand third after Southampton lost 2-0 to Liverpool in Sunday’s late game, following on from Saturday’s defeat for Manchester United at Swansea City. Wenger’s team have little time to recover energy levels before the European tie against Monaco, the first leg of which is at the Emirates Stadium on Wednesday night.
Wenger, though, is confident his squad are showing they do indeed have what is needed to last the distance on all fronts.
“The spirit is there and we want to keep that as a very strong basis,” he said. “The team has come up a level and we will see that with the results.”
The Arsenal manager warned there can be no sense of complacency when they tackle Monaco, who topped Champions League Group C and won 1-0 at Nice on Friday night to maintain their own domestic top-four challenge.
“The last 16 in recent years has been super tough. This is a 50/50 game,” said Wenger, who is set to face, for the first time in a competitive fixture, the club he guided to the 1988 Ligue 1 title.
“We know that Monaco are very tight defensively; they didn’t concede in the group stage against good teams. Of course, it will be tricky, but a possible tie.
“It is really a 50/50 because Monaco are in a similar position to us. They came back into a good position in the league and their confidence level will be high.”
Wenger also led Monaco to success in the 1991 Coupe de France before reaching the 1992 European Cup Winners’ Cup final and then the semi-finals of the Champions League in 1994.
Despite all of the nostalgia connected with the tie, Wenger, who left Monaco in 1995 to take over at Nagoya Grampus in Japan, said his focus had been on getting the needed result away to Crystal Palace.
“I have enough experience to know that the most important game is this one. After, you think about the next one, so it has not been hard,” he said. “We fought like mad to come back in a strong position in the [Premier League], and not to win would have been disastrous.”
Wenger must decide whether to change a winning side for the European tie, with both England internationals Jack Wilshere, fit again following ankle surgery, and Theo Walcott having watched on from the bench at Palace.
Goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny may also be in line for a recall, with David Ospina having suffered a back problem during the second half after coming out to make an acrobatic headed clearance, which later led to a stoppage in play for treatment to the Colombian.
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Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20NOTHING%20PHONE%20(2a)
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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How does ToTok work?
The calling app is available to download on Google Play and Apple App Store
To successfully install ToTok, users are asked to enter their phone number and then create a nickname.
The app then gives users the option add their existing phone contacts, allowing them to immediately contact people also using the application by video or voice call or via message.
Users can also invite other contacts to download ToTok to allow them to make contact through the app.
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
Essentials
The flights: You can fly from the UAE to Iceland with one stop in Europe with a variety of airlines. Return flights with Emirates from Dubai to Stockholm, then Icelandair to Reykjavik, cost from Dh4,153 return. The whole trip takes 11 hours. British Airways flies from Abu Dhabi and Dubai to Reykjavik, via London, with return flights taking 12 hours and costing from Dh2,490 return, including taxes.
The activities: A half-day Silfra snorkelling trip costs 14,990 Icelandic kronur (Dh544) with Dive.is. Inside the Volcano also takes half a day and costs 42,000 kronur (Dh1,524). The Jokulsarlon small-boat cruise lasts about an hour and costs 9,800 kronur (Dh356). Into the Glacier costs 19,500 kronur (Dh708). It lasts three to four hours.
The tours: It’s often better to book a tailor-made trip through a specialist operator. UK-based Discover the World offers seven nights, self-driving, across the island from £892 (Dh4,505) per person. This includes three nights’ accommodation at Hotel Husafell near Into the Glacier, two nights at Hotel Ranga and two nights at the Icelandair Hotel Klaustur. It includes car rental, plus an iPad with itinerary and tourist information pre-loaded onto it, while activities can be booked as optional extras. More information inspiredbyiceland.com
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
'O'
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EAuthor%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Zeina%20Hashem%20Beck%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPages%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20112%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPublisher%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Penguin%20Books%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EAvailable%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Now%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
More on animal trafficking
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Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
- Join parent networks
- Look beyond school fees
- Keep an open mind
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
Set-jetting on the Emerald Isle
Other shows filmed in Ireland include: Vikings (County Wicklow), The Fall (Belfast), Line of Duty (Belfast), Penny Dreadful (Dublin), Ripper Street (Dublin), Krypton (Belfast)