Gallas reveals Arsenal unrest

Captain tells of disharmony in the Arsenal camp

By James Dall   Last updated: 21st November 2008

Birmingham v Arsenal William Gallas woe

Gallas: 'Very frustrated'

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William Gallas has revealed the Arsenal squad has been victim of 'complaining', 'insults' and 'problems' this season.

The Gunners have endured a poor start to the campaign, losing four of their opening 13 Premier League matches.

Gallas, who is captaining the side for a second term, has borne the brunt of criticism in the past - most notably after his public demonstration of emotion at Birmingham City last season.

The France international is disappointed he has been made a scapegoat and has now explained of unrest in the Emirates Stadium camp, and in turn demanded his team-mates discover their fighting spirit.

Insults

"When, as captain, some players come up to you and talk to you about a player...complaining about him... and then during the match you speak to this player and the player in question insults us," Gallas told AP. "There comes a time where we can no longer comprehend how this can happen.

"I am trying to defend myself a bit without giving names. Otherwise I'm taking it all (the blame). It's very frustrating," he said. "I'm 31, the player is six years younger than me."

He also revealed a bust-up at half-time of the 4-4 draw with rivals Tottenham Hotspur - a match Arsenal were winning 4-2 with just minutes remaining.

Gallas continued: "There was a problem at half-time. The only thing that I could say at half-time was, 'Guys, we resolve these problems after the match, not at half-time.'

"We have to understand that to be champions, you have to play big matches every weekend and fight. We are coming up against teams who are not scared to play football against us, who are not scared to take us on at our place, and this is becoming dangerous for Arsenal.

Warriors

"We are not brave enough in battle. I think we need to be soldiers. We have to be warriors. There are teams who can do it well against us, and we have to be able to face up to these attacks."

Gallas went on to conclude that it is imperative for the club that they lift silverware after Arsenal last tasted glory back in 2005, when they lifted the FA Cup.

He added: "I have to win something this year. I have to win something, Arsenal has to win something. It's four or five years since Arsenal won anything - 2004 (the league title). That's nearly five years, and that's not good.

"For me the title is not over, it's true that we are nine points behind Chelsea, but you have to be optimistic and you can't give up."