No apologies from Cats boss on defensive tactics
Feb 23 2009 by Luke Edwards, The Journal
RICKY Sbragia was unapologetic about his side’s defensive approach as Sunderland secured a valuable point against Arsenal at the weekend.
A clearly frustrated Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger had criticised Sunderland’s lack of ambition at the Emirates Stadium, but Sbragia was unimpressed with the Frenchman’s moaning.
He said: “I can remember – I could be wrong – seven, eight years ago Arsene Wenger made a comment on Match of the Day when Arsenal beat Blackburn 7-2. He said, ‘Blackburn came here and played some great football’. That has always stuck in my mind, I don’t know why. I don’t know what I would think if I was the manager of Blackburn. We knew it was going to be hard and that Arsenal are a very good team. We had to frustrate them. We had luck today, I know that. The keeper has made some great saves and on another day they might have beaten us by four or five, but they haven’t and we’re delighted to get the point. He (Wenger) said something like, ‘You should come here and play football’. That’s difficult to take from our point of view and it’s unnecessary. They know teams are going to come here and do that. We’re fighting for points. I don’t want to come here and lay down, lose 5-0 and say we played excellent football. I wouldn’t want that and I don’t think I would be in a job for too long if that happened.” Sbragia was part of the coaching staff at Bolton when the Trotters regularly upset Arsenal and he continued to defend himself from a typically un-magnanimous Wenger.
He added: “It would be fantastic if everybody played the same sort of fast free-flowing football, but unfortunately we are miles behind Arsenal. We have to stay in the Premier League and this could possibly be our second year. Hopefully in four or five years time we can look at Aston Villa and Everton and buy some better players.
“At present, we are fighting for our lives. If one of the bigger clubs were third bottom of the Premier League, would they be playing flowing football?
“I think, credit to the players, since I have taken over, they have been absolutely excellent and we’ve stuck to a plan away from home and we know we are going to get points and we have to win at home.
“It’s different the way we play away from home and the way we play at home.”
