Arsenal Boss Arsene Wenger: We Have To Prove Our 'Moment Has Come'

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has told his young team to prove their "moment has come" as they get set for Sunday's Premier League showdown with Chelsea.

The north London side trail the Blues by eight points, and another season without a trophy would heap the pressure on Wenger and his young guns.

The French manager has urged his team to avoid that scenario and show their potential, starting by proving their title credentials by defeating the league leaders.

"There is a period for any team to come out and show its strength. For my team, this moment has come," Wenger said, as quoted by BBC Sport.

"We have the strength and we want to show we're strong enough to beat them.

"We are not anymore a team that has to be considered to be young.

"I believe for us the most important thing is to stick to our game, do not focus on any special individual on the other side, because you win these kind of games by dominating the game.

"If we focus too much on Chelsea it won't help us."

Opposite number Carlo Ancelotti is an admirer of Arsenal's brand of football, and knows a tough encounter awaits.

"This is not a decisive match for Chelsea or for Arsenal," said Ancelotti.

"It's an important match. Arsenal will want to win the game, and Chelsea also, but it's not decisive for the title.

"It would be 11 points if we won, but Arsenal would have a game in hand. It's not so important for the title.

"It is a very important game because Arsenal are one of the most important teams in England and Europe.

"They're playing very well. I like their style - they try to play and attack to create difficulties for the other teams. It will be a very good test for us."

Andrew Southwick