Bolton 0 Arsenal 0: Arsene Wenger still confident of top-four finish

Arsene Wenger is still convinced Arsenal can finish in the top four – despite watching his side stumble to a goalless draw at Bolton on Wednesday.

Robin van Persie twice hit the woodwork on a frustrating evening for the Gunners as they were kept at bay by a battling Wanderers side, whose best chance fell to David N’Gog in the first half.

The result leaves Wenger’s men languishing in seventh place in the Premier League table, five points behind Chelsea in fourth.

But the Gunners boss is confident his side, who have picked up just one point from their last four league outings, will be able to mount a challenge for a Champions League spot.

“There is a long way to go and I am confident that we can come back,” he said. “We have gone through a difficult period where we lost the three championship games, but we could have won them as well.

“We give our best in every game and that is what we did tonight.

“We had even more difficult periods when we won championships and went six games without a win. It’s part of football when you lose three games like we did, when you do not lose the fourth game it is already not too bad.”

Reflecting on the result at the Reebok, Wenger added: “We feel we have dropped two points because we had chances to win the game.

“But we produced a decent game against a difficult opponent who gives you the ball, marks tight and waits for their chance.”