Source: PA
Vermaelen rallies Gunners
Thomas Vermaelen has warned Arsenal cannot afford to be off their game for one moment if they are to mount a serious title challenge once again.
The Gunners open the quest for a first championship since 2004 at Liverpool on Sunday, where the Belgian centre-half could well be captain should Cesc Fabregas not be deemed match fit.
Arsene Wenger's men failed to stay the distance in the last campaign, with lapses in concentration proving costly. Points which would have kept them in the hunt were thrown away in conceding a last-minute equaliser at Birmingham and then inexplicably losing at Wigan having been 2-0 ahead.
Vermaelen, though, insists the Gunners are wiser for the experience.
"You have to look at all games which we lost, and each one had its own story," Vermaelen told Arsenal TV Online. "In football, it is really difficult to perform at a high level in every game - and that is what we have to do every year.
"We are one year older now, more experienced. For myself, as an individual, I have learned a lot last year and I hope I can improve. I feel the same pressure as I did last year, that is to be as good for the team as I can, to perform the best I can and to win some things."
