I think it’s safe to say that at no time in his 16-year Arsenal reign has Arsene Wenger been under as much pressure as he is at the present moment, but in an interview he gave to the Times (paywall) he is in defiant mood and repeated his criticism of the media to look for a dramatic angle.

He said

“It is fashionable because we lost a game. When you lose a game and you are expected to do well, you are victims, just as much as if you win a game, everyone says you are fantastic.

“But I do not want to get too involved with this. It is superficial analysis, to turn things against you when it suits an agenda. It is part of our world. It is unbelievable [the criticism Arsenal have faced]. But I do not believe in that world. I do not believe I am king of the world when we do well, and I don’t believe I am the worst when we do badly.

“We live in a world that needs a drama every day. Football is a game to be enjoyed. We do not need to live in a dramatic world consistently.

“This club is in fantastic shape. We have a good team, a strong structure, that we have built over the years. We are in a strong situation financially and mentally. Our world is not as dramatic as it is painted.

“But what has changed is the world has become more emotional about everything, but that is not the real world. The real world is to take things in the right way. We lost on Saturday. No matter what happens, Arsenal will lose games again, and we will win games again.”

Yesterday Wenger was keen to dispel the press reports which had claimed that assistant manager Steve Bould had tore in to the players after Arsenal slumped to a 2-0 defeat at home at the hands of Swansea, saying

That’s not true at all  there is nothing more irritating than superficial information. It would be better that people are a bit responsible for what they write. I take my responsibilities but I think informed people in the wrong way is bad and it is time for some people to realise that.

And in the Times interview he hit out again at what he described as ‘superficial analysis’ which was the result of football’s tendency to lean towards the dramatic, adding

At the moment, it is fashionable to be against Arsenal. So every single word you say, people turn it against you. That does not me saying what I believe.