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We must be wary of Pires - Wenger
We must be wary of Pires - Wenger
Uefa Champions League, Quarter-final first leg: Villarreal v Arsenal
Venue: Estadio El Madrigal
Date: Wednesday, 15 April Kick-off: 1945 GMT
Coverage: Full commentary on BBC Radio 5 Live with live text commentary on the BBC Sport website. Also live on ITV4
Wenger knows Cygan (left) and Pires (right) from their Arsenal days
Boss Arsene Wenger says Arsenal must be wary of former Gunners players Pascal Cygan and Robert Pires when they face Villarreal in the Champions League. Winger Pires made 63 Champions League appearances for the Gunners, and Wenger said the French pair would raise their game against their old side.
"They want to show you that they still have the quality and they are even more resolute to punish you," he said.
"Everybody who loves Arsenal loves Robert Pires. For us he was fantastic."
Pires spent six years at Arsenal after joining them from Marseille in 2000, making 189 appearances before joining Villarreal, including playing in both legs of the 2006 Champions League semi-final win over the Spanish side.
He would have made even more appearances had he not suffered a serious cruciate knee ligament injury in 2002.
Before his injury, Wenger said he was "the best player in the world in his position. When I picked the team he was always automatically on the team sheet."
Central defender Cygan played in 20 Champions League games during his four-year spell with Arsenal before following Pires to Villarreal in August 2006.
Uefa Champions League, Quarter-final first leg: Villarreal v Arsenal
Venue: Estadio El Madrigal
Date: Wednesday, 15 April Kick-off: 1945 GMT
Coverage: Full commentary on BBC Radio 5 Live with live text commentary on the BBC Sport website. Also live on ITV4
Wenger knows Cygan (left) and Pires (right) from their Arsenal days
Boss Arsene Wenger says Arsenal must be wary of former Gunners players Pascal Cygan and Robert Pires when they face Villarreal in the Champions League. Winger Pires made 63 Champions League appearances for the Gunners, and Wenger said the French pair would raise their game against their old side.
"They want to show you that they still have the quality and they are even more resolute to punish you," he said.
"Everybody who loves Arsenal loves Robert Pires. For us he was fantastic."
Pires spent six years at Arsenal after joining them from Marseille in 2000, making 189 appearances before joining Villarreal, including playing in both legs of the 2006 Champions League semi-final win over the Spanish side.
He would have made even more appearances had he not suffered a serious cruciate knee ligament injury in 2002.
Before his injury, Wenger said he was "the best player in the world in his position. When I picked the team he was always automatically on the team sheet."
Central defender Cygan played in 20 Champions League games during his four-year spell with Arsenal before following Pires to Villarreal in August 2006.
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