Wenger: Why I chose Almunia

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Date	Time	C	Opponent	F	A	R	S
14 Aug	3:00 PM	P	Liverpool (A)	1	1	Draw

Manager Arsène Wenger has explained why he decided to choose goalkeeper Manuel Almunia in yesterday's opening match against Liverpool.

The Spaniard was once again under the spotlight as he was beaten at his near post, allowing then ten men Liverpool to go 1-0 up.

The 32-year-old made several more mistakes in the match as he failed to grab corners that he had come for, spared further embarrassment when the home side failed to take their chances in the match.

Explaining his decision, Wenger said: "At the moment it is better for me not to talk about that because it doesn't help the keepers who play for us, so it is better that we focus on the goalkeepers we have. I believe Almunia had a good game today.

"The decision process is that both [Almunia and Fabianski] had a good pre-season and in the end I went for a bit more experience coming here with a massive pressure on for the first game. I decided to play Almunia because he knows what it is about.

"We were quite solid as a team, our passing is still decent and we need a bit more penetration in the final third to take advantage of our possession.

"That is a bit normal because many players are just coming back from the World Cup and some from injuries. It is a positive that the spirit is there and the attitude was good.

"We finished third last year and our ambition is to progress, to improve. I feel the two players who we bought have done well - I believe Chamakh and Koscielny had an impress performance today. We are still a bit short defensively."

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