The French boss explained that there were times when he and Rosicky believed the Czech star's playing career was over...
Arsenal's introductory pre-season fixture against neighbouring club Barnet provided Tomas Rosicky with a 45-minute run-out and a return to football following a lay-off that stretched way back to January 2008.
And there were times during that lengthy spell that had Arsene Wenger wondering whether the Czech Republic international would be able to recover fully from the series of complex hamstring complaints.
"There was a time when I was worried Tomas wouldn't play football again and he felt the same," Wenger told the Daily Telegraph.
"But he had always led a healthy and dedicated life. Mentally he's also very strong. Of course you have to ask and hope if he will ever get back to where we want him to be and the answer looks like 'yes'."
Wenger also commented on the player's willingness to go into 50/50 challenges unhesitatingly, which were an indication of Rosicky's confidence that he had fully recovered."At some stage he was even a bit too confident to go into dangerous tackles. We have to manage him well and prepare him well. If he comes through pre-season well he could start the season."
On the club's solitary summer signing, Thomas Vermaelen, Wenger added, "Vermaelen had a good start [against Barnet] and I think he had a good welcome to english football because he got some good challenges here. I think it was a good start for him overall.
"He is strong, solid, calm and when he became more confident in the second half you could see that he passes the ball well. He should be a good addition to the squad, yes...BERNAMA
No comments:
Post a Comment