Wenger: We've got to smoke out Luis Suarez

ARSENE WENGER has admitted the £40m plus £1 bid to try and lure Luis Suarez to the Emirates in the summer was cheeky.

But the Arsenal boss reckons his side are still good enough to beat third-place Liverpool in tonight’s big showdown – even with the Uruguay hotshot in top form

After seeing two earlier offers turned down, the Gunners thought their bid would activate a clause in the Suarez contract that said he could leave Anfield for more than £40m.

But Liverpool rejected the bid, with American owner John Henry tweeting: “I don’t know what they’re smoking over there at the Emirates.” Wenger laughed it off by saying,

“We don’t smoke here”, although the Frenchman admitted he hadn’t meant any offence in making the offer.
He said: “It was not the most subtle thing we could have done, but it was not meant to be provocative at all. It could be interpreted like that, but it was not done on purpose.

Arsene Wenger say the summer bid for Suarez was not meant to be provocative [GETTY]

“It was not the most subtle thing we could have done, but it was not meant to be provocative at all”

Arsene Wenger

“I don’t want to dwell more on that situation because it’s one of the transfers that didn’t work.
“Every year, in every club, you have two or three but there’s no need afterwards to speak about it. He’s being professional – he plays there and is paid by Liverpool – and that’s it.

“We want to win the game and the most important part is how we play, not how Suarez plays.
“Life is about opportunities that you miss and that you take. You can only make life with your own qualities.
“We have a squad that is good enough to beat Liverpool, and that’s what we want to focus on.”

Arsenal have lost their last two home games against Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League and Chelsea in the Capital One Cup, and with the return trip to Dortmund on Tuesday and then a trip to face Manchester United, the Gunners face a real test of their credentials.

And Wenger knows that, despite their two-point advantage over the chasing pack, his side still have to prove they can last the distance.
“It’s too early. What we want first is to convince everybody we can play at the top,” he said.

“Hopefully in April we’ll have to ask ourselves, ‘Have we enough resources to cross the line?’ But after nine games, it’s too early.

“Every competition is different. Liverpool is a big game for us in a completely different competition and of course we want to respond well.

Arsenal fans will welcome the return of Olivier Giroud this weekend [EPA]

“It was a disappointment on Tuesday night, I don’t deny that. But we want to respond in a very strong way in a different competition where we are in a very strong position.”

Arsenal fans will be pleased to see Olivier Giroud return to lead the line after Nicklas Bendtner’s poor display against Chelsea.

Despite the Dane and Korean Chu-Young Park being his only back-up strikers, Wenger hasn’t decided whether to splash the cash when the transfer window opens.

He said: “We didn’t create a lot and Giroud at the moment is a big part in our game. But if Theo Walcott had played, or if Lukas Podolski plays, the threat increases.

“I don’t know yet if we will strengthen up front in January.
“Honestly, I want to see where westand at the end of December. We have Bendtner, Park.
“We have plenty of solutions. Even Mesut Ozil can play up front.”