It's good to be close to Man United: Wilshere

Updated on: 15 January,2011 07:53 AM IST |
AFP |

Arsenal hope to return to winning ways in the EPL when they travel to London rivals West Ham on Saturday after two disappointing cup outings

Arsenal hope to return to winning ways in the EPL when they travel to London rivals West Ham on Saturday after two disappointing cup outings.

The Gunners surprisingly lost 1-0 at Championship side Ipswich Town on Wednesday in the first leg of the semi-final of the League Cup. And the previous Saturday had seen them held 1-1 at the Emirates Stadium in the FA Cup third round by Leeds United. Arsenal are still well placed in the race for the Premier League title, although they are four points behind leaders Manchester United -- the last team to beat them in league action.

Champions Chelsea and Birmingham were beaten over the festive period and together with draws against Wigan and Manchester City,u00a0 it added up to a satisfying points haul for Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere.

"Overall I thought we had a good Christmas period," the 18-year-old said. "We got eight points from four games and we're close to Manchester United so it's been a successful period. "We need to learn to see out games a bit more. We've had some disappointing results when we've been leading and teams have come back to draw or beat us."

Arsenal were not at all impressive against Ipswich, however, and defender Johan Djourou called for an instant improvement at Upton Park.

"We have to pick ourselves up. We are disappointed, but we have to bounce back straight away," the Switzerland international said.