“Don’t blame my players for Bradford defeat” – Arsene Wenger

After seeing his side dumped out of the Capital One Cup by Bradford, Arsene Wenger insisted his players should not feel embarrassed.

The Gunners struggled all match long to convert their chances and needed a Thomas Vermaelen header in the 86th minute, to take the game into extra time. The League Two side eventually won 3-2 on penalties.

“You feel embarrassed when you don’t give everything but I feel the team did fight and they will be more disappointed and frustrated,” the French manager said.

“It’s disappointing but congratulations to Bradford. They defended well, started stronger than us and in the second half and extra time it was all us but we couldn’t convert our chances.

“It was a typical English cup game on a difficult pitch and overall we lost on penalties but I cannot fault the efforts, we kept going until the last minute and in the end Bradford got on top of us.

“Of course we missed three penalties and that’s a lot to take.”

Wenger also reflected on his team’s failure to win the game in normal time and Bradford’s defensive organisation.

“They defended very well, very deep in their own half, the pitch was a bit slippery and there was no space.

“We played with a very offensive team and for over an hour played with five strikers but couldn’t score. Where does it leave our season? To focus on the next game, sport is about that.”

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