Source: Team_Talk
Gunners to up aggression - Djourou
Defender Johan Djourou has warned the rest of the Premier League to expect a more aggressive Arsenal next season.[LNB] The Gunners, currently away on a training camp in Austria, failed to stay the distance in the last title race as lapses in concentration at the back proved costly.[LNB]Arsenal leaked 41 goals - nine more than champions Chelsea and some 13 extra than Manchester United, who had the meanest rearguard in the top flight.[LNB]Djourou, however, insists that is all about to change, as the Swiss international prepares to return from a long-term knee injury.[LNB]"It is true that 41 goals is too much when you are playing for the top places," the defender told arsenal.com.[LNB]"I think sometimes we are missing a bit of aggression.[LNB]"It is not that we are not good enough, because the team is good enough.[LNB]"We have top players at the back, top players all over the pitch. It is just that we have to be stronger as a unit."[LNB]Centre-back Djourou missed almost the entire campaign last season, playing just once against Fulham on the final day.[LNB]The 23-year-old, though, is ready for the challenges ahead as he looks to battle summer-signing Laurent Koscielny alongside Thomas Vermaelen at the heart of the Gunners defence.[LNB]"Now it is time to step up and start," Djourou declared.[LNB]"I will always say that, but now I am mature enough.[LNB]"We will have to see with the injury because when you have it for so long it is difficult to come straight back into things.[LNB]"But I played 90 minutes against Strum Graz and it went well.[LNB]"I have to get other games under my belt and hopefully I will be ready."[LNB]Djourou could get another chance to impress in Tuesday's match against Austrian Regional League East outfit SC Neusiedl 1919.[LNB]The squad will then return to England ahead of the Emirates Cup, when both of Arsenal's World Cup finalists Cesc Fabregas and Robin van Persie will rejoin them.[LNB]After the matches against AC Milan and Celtic, Wenger will fine tune his preparations with a trip to Legia Warsaw on August 7 before travelling to Liverpool for their opening Premier League fixture.[LNB]By then Wenger will want the future of captain Fabregas sorted one way or another, as Barcelona look to lure the Spain midfielder back to the Nou Camp.[LNB]With Croatia striker Eduardo having been sold to Shakhtar Donetsk following the capture of long-time target Marouane Chamakh before the World Cup, the Gunners boss is no longer on the lookout for more offensive talent.[LNB]However, Wenger does want to bolster the defence with at least one more body, as Mikael Silvestre and William Gallas have both left at the end of their contracts.[LNB]Veteran Sol Campbell could yet return for a another season on a short-term deal, while Arsenal are also said to be tracking both Everton's Phil Jagielka and German international Per Mertesacker.
