Wenger hoping for one last upset to save Champions League record

Arsene Wenger wants Arsenal to believe in one
more day of shocks in the Premier League in order
to preserve his proud record of qualifying for the
Champions League.
The 67-year-old has never failed to guide the
Gunners into a qualification spot for the
competition in his 20 full seasons at Arsenal, but
his side face an uphill battle to finish in the top four
this season.
Arsenal are a point behind fourth-place Liverpool
and three adrift of Manchester City in third going
into the final round of matches on Sunday.
A win for Wenger's side would lift them to 75
points – four more than they managed last term,
when they finished second – but that would not be
enough to move into the top four if Liverpool beat
Middlesbrough and City avoid defeat at Watford.
But Wenger, pointing to City's dramatic title win in
2011-12 when Sergio Aguero struck the crucial
goal in injury time, insists anything is possible.
"We can do 75 points, so let's do it," said the
Gunners manager. "Will it be enough or not? I don't
know. If you had to bet, you would say: 'No, it will
not be enough'. But you never know.
"Man City won the championship in the last minute
against QPR, so it can happen.
"It's unpredictable. Liverpool will certainly be up
for it; Middlesbrough will be up for it. Is Liverpool
favourite? Yes. But we played 0-0 at home against
Middlesbrough. It was not easy."
Arsenal were in a similar position in 2005-06,
when they leapfrogged Tottenham to go fourth on
the final day of the season after their north London
rivals – whose squad had been blighted by food
poisoning the day before – lost 2-1 to West Ham.
But Wenger says the fear of missing out that year
was not as great given that they had the chance to
qualify for the following season by beating
Barcelona in the final, although they went on to
lose that match 2-1.
"In 2006, we had the Champions League final to
prepare and this season we have the FA Cup final,"
he said. "We thought we had the chance to win the
Champions League and to be in the Champions
League again, so the fear to be in it was less big.
"This time, we are less likely to be in it but we still
can manage it by only focusing on what we think is
important, which is to win against Everton."
Wenger has also hit out at the importance being
placed on a top-four finish following years of
criticism for delivering few other successes of note
at Emirates Stadium.
"For 20 years, I had to answer: 'Is that all you have
to offer?' So, Sunday, it becomes an absolutely
vital subject? Absolutely unbelievable," he said.
"Financially, you don't suffer any more [by failing
to qualify]. During the period when we had to pay
the Emirates Stadium off, the income of the
Champions League was absolutely vital. But it
does not have the financial weight that it had
before because television money has gone up.
"It's more the fact that we want to play in the best
competition but did Chelsea play in the Champions
League this year? Did Liverpool? No. If we have to
cope with it, we have to cope with it."