Arsene Wenger says his search for a new centre-back is going nowhere as he seeks to bring in quality.
Arsenal boss nowhere near landing top quality centre-back
Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger says his search for a new centre-back is going nowhere as he seeks to bring in quality.
Thomas Vermaelen and Sebastien Squillaci are sidelined, prompting the Gunners boss to look for new faces in January.
Wenger has been linked with Bolton's Gary Cahill, Aston Villa centre-half Richard Dunne, Matthew Upson of West Ham and Werder Bremen's Per Mertesacker.
But he insists he is not close to signing anyone yet and told
Arsenal TV Online: "It is still nowhere. We get many offers but at the moment, nothing concrete.
Quality
"If you look at the centre-backs we have, they are quality; [Johan] Djourou, Squillaci, [Laurent] Koscielny, Vermaelen.
"The quality of the player coming in, what will it be? It is a compliment of the players we have already? It is very difficult to predict."
Meanwhile, Wenger admits he will make "a few changes" for the FA Cup third round replay at Leeds on Wednesday following a busy fixture programme.
After watching his team return to winning ways with a 3-0 victory at West Ham having been well below-par in the shock Carling Cup defeat to Ipswich, Wenger wants the Gunners to now push on.
"The speed of our display, the speed of thought, the sharpness of our game has to improve," he said.
More positive
"We want to be sharper and more positive, we started the game a little bit off our usual level. That means first, mentally, of all you want to switch on much quicker."
The Gunners will face a testing atmosphere at Elland Road but Wenger feels his squad can handle it.
"No matter what they do, the fans will be behind the team at Leeds. On the other hand, we are used to that and that would not be any excuse for us," he said.
"We have played all over the world, everywhere, in vociferous stadiums. I don't think that will be any excuse for us, it's natural and normal.
"What's important is that you show your quality no matter in what kind of environment you play."
