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Camden New Journal - by STEVE BARNETT
Published: 21 August 2008

Wenger turns to Mexican Vela in hunt for goals

Striker ‘will be a regular’ for Gunners

ARSENE Wenger is convinced young Mexican striker Carlos Vela can beef up his strikeforce after the Gunners failed to make the most of their chances in their opening match of the new season.
The Gunners chief looked on as main marksman Emmanuel Adebayor fluffed his lines against West Bromich Albion on Saturday, drawing criticism from the home supporters.
Arsenal won 1-0 but missed the chance of blazing a trail to the top of the table with a series of misses, a problem Wenger is confident Vela will solve.
“Vela has shown in pre-season that he is a good player,” said Wenger. “He will play regularly. We have four strikers and he is one of our four. In a season of 60 games, he will play games.”
Wenger also said he was convinced Adebayor would find his scoring boots again despite firing blanks against the Baggies.
Meanwhile, the Frenchman admitted the pressure was on to land a trophy after finishing empty-handed last term, but warned his critics not to expect to see him chasing after the League Cup – which was won by rivals Spurs last season.
Wenger, this week linked to a move for Manchester United’s veteran defender Mikael Silvestre, said: “Is it important to finish 12th and win the Carling Cup? Not for me. For me the quality of a big club is to fight for the championship.
“It’s very frustrating if you don’t win it, but what’s important to me is the quality and the constituency of my club. Two or three points’ difference is not a big gap – and that’s how we finished last year.
“We only lost three games last season and I believe we have the stability in our club to improve. I know we are not making headlines with big names but what’s important is what we produce on the pitch.”

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