WENGER EXPECTING TOUGH FULHAM CLASH

Arsene Wenger expects another tough match when Arsenal travel to Fulham in the Barclays Premier League today.

The Gunners head into the game fourth in the table after defeating QPR 1-0 on New Year’s Eve as Robin van Persie netted the all-important goal that propelled them up to the Champions League spots and above both Chelsea and Liverpool. Wenger now leads his side across London to Fulham and expects a difficult match by the Thames.

“I am expecting a tough game,” he said. “You can see that everybody finds a good motivation against Arsenal. Everybody organises well, stops us from playing and that will happen again at Fulham.”

He added: “Of course we have three points and will be very focused to get the win there. For us it is always a difficult game at Fulham.”

Wenger’s task was made all the more difficult by Thomas Vermaelen limping off against QPR.

The Belgium international was forced off in the 54th minute with a calf strain, leaving defensive midfielder Francis Coquelin to fill in at left-back.

Vermaelen’s injuries severely weakens Wenger’s options with Kieran Gibbs (stomach) and Andre Santos (ankle) both sidelined for the foreseeable future.

Asked whether Vermaelen’s injury heightens the need for defensive reinforcements, Wenger said: “Straight after the game I don’t know because I need to analyse it all.

“Gibbs is three weeks away but it would be stupid to lose points because we don’t have a left-back.”

The aforementioned trio all miss the match at Craven Cottage and will be joined on the sidelines by Jack Wilshere, Carl Jenkinson and Bacary Sagna.

Chelsea target Arsenal and Tottenham stars

Chelsea boss Andre Villas-Boas is planning an audacious £65 million double swoop on Arsenal and Tottenham stars Theo Walcott and Luka Modric.

Having been reportedly given a transfer war chest of £140 million by owner Roman Abramovich, Villas-Boas is planning to revamp his squad with young guns in a bid to secure the all important top four finish that the Blues currently find just out of reach.

The Portuguese manager will look to re-ignite interest in Tottenham midfielder Modric, a player the West London club tried hard to secure in the summer and a player who has himself stated his desire to make the move to Chelsea.

The Croatian international demanded a move away from White Hart Lane after hearing of interest from Villas-Boas but Spurs chairman Daniel Levy refused to sell the 26 year-old.

Despite Tottenham’s great start to the campaign Modric has recently been quoted as saying that a move to Chelsea is still a possibility and Chelsea will launch a fresh £35m bid for the former Dinamo Zagreb man as they seek to revive their flagging Premier League campaign.

Villas-Boas is also a big admirer of Arsenal winger Theo Walcott and the continuing efforts to get the young England man to sign a new Gunners contract have alerted Chelsea to the possibility of completing an audacious swoop.

The former Southampton man has just 18 months to run on his current contract and reportedly his £85,000 a week demands are not being met by the North London club.

Chelsea are prepared to offer £30m for the 22 year-old, who started the season with a bang but has been somewhat out of sorts over the past month leading to speculation that all is not well at the Emirates Stadium.

Villas-Boas will reportedly sanction a wage offer of as much as £120k a week, an offer far in excess of his reported demands and will hope that the Arsenal attacker may push to leave the club if his demands are not met.

The former FC Porto boss sees Walcott as an ideal signing to add more natural width to his attack and would ably help become of his policy to reverse the ageing nature of his Chelsea squad.

Chelsea saw first hand what Theo Walcott is capable of as the young wide-man tortured Villas-Boas’s side during Arsenal’s 5-3 win at Stamford Bridge back in October.

Van Persie hints at Arsenal stay

Arsenal striker Robin van Persie has hinted that he might remain at the Emirates, amid speculation about where his future may lie.

The 28-year-old has 18 months left on his existing contract and is yet to come to an agreement over an extension to his stay in north London, with some reports pointing towards interest from Barcelona and Manchester City.

Now the Dutchman has claimed that his family has settled down well in London, with the former Feyenoord man having been at the club since 2004.

“We love the life in London and I enjoy watching my kids grow up here,” Van Persie told reporters.

“They grow up like the English kids with good manners and values of England.”

“The place where we live, just outside the city, is fantastic. We have everything we want.”

“The English people are so incredibly polite where I live. People are nice here. That makes life a real pleasure.”

“My children have become more English than Dutch. They have taken up the culture and values of England.”

“It makes me melt at times when I see how well my children are doing here. When Shaqueel has half-term with school, he does not want to go back to the Netherlands anymore.”

Van Persie had a stellar 2011. He scored 35 Premier League goals during the course of the calendar year, beating Thierry Henry’s Arsenal record but falling one goal short of equalling the Premier League record held by Alan Shearer.

His final goal of 2011 was against Queens Park Rangers on New Year’s Eve.

As the only goal of the match it ensured the Gunners took the three points and moved into the top four of the Premier League for the first time this season.

The Arsenal captain attributed his outstanding performances during the year to his desire to repay the fans for their support.

“It is the biggest compliment I could wish for,” Van Persie added.

“Arsenal fans are real lovers of the game.”

“They don’t miss anything in the stadium and are there for the team and the individual players.”

“I have to admit I love banners like ‘We don’t need Batman, we’ve got Robin’ and stuff like that.”

“I also love it when I run on to the pitch and I hear the entire crowd roar. What bigger compliment could I wish for as a player?”

“At Arsenal, the fans so want me to do well. And that gives me a kick. That’s what I do it for. As a thank you, I want to give them so much in return on the pitch.”

Thiago: Messi should claim top prize

Barcelona midfielder Thiago Alcantara believe his team-mate Lionel Messi should win the FIFA Ballon d'Or.

Argentina international Messi is up against Barca team-mate Xavi Hernandez and Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo for the annual FIFA award, and the 20-year-old feels the South American deserves the title.

"Leo Messi deserves the Ballon d'Or ahead of Xavi and Cristiano Ronaldo. It's a pleasure playing alongside him," the Spain international told Marca.

Thiago has made big strides under Barca coach Pep Guardiola, and is eager to progress further as a player during the next 12 months.

"In 2012 I want to continue working, learning from my peers, and continue the work of recent years," he said.

Barcelona have been drawn against Osasuna in the Copa del Rey last 16, with the first leg to take place on Wednesday, and Thiago feels his side are in the right physical condition to get a victory.

"We are alright, have no problems, and we are perfectly in order to play against Osasuna," he said.

United to keep Berbatov, says Ferguson

Sir Alex Ferguson has revealed Manchester United forward Dimitar Berbatov will have his contract at the club extended.

Berbatov’s current deal expires at the end of the season and the Bulgarian had looked set to leave at the end of the season following a year spent mostly on the sidelines.

But Berbatov’s recent good form, including a hat-trick against Wigan, may have convinced his manager that he still has plenty to offer.

Ferguson told reporters: “We’ll be exercising it (the option to renew Berbatov’s contract). I think it kicks in in March.”

The manager also moved quickly to dismiss reports that Chris Smalling is suffering from glandular fever and could miss several months due to illness.

“I have seen the reports,” Sir Alex said. “They are well wide of the mark. He has tonsillitis.”

“He had glandular fever as a kid but that’s not the case here. He should be ready for the Newcastle game, at least definitely the Manchester City game in the FA Cup. He’ll be ready for those games.”

“We don’t have much changes. Obviously injuries to the defenders are quite a concern now, with Jonny Evans taken off at half-time (against Wigan).

“We’re hoping Phil Jones will be fit, there’s possibly an outside chance that Rio Ferdinand will get on the bench. Other than that, we’re the same.”

“Hopefully we can keep the momentum going. The form is good and the players are enjoying themselves too.”

United have suffered a defensive crisis recently with Michael Carrick and Patrice Evra paired at the back against Wigan on Boxing Day.

Wenger wants Henry to help out

The Arsenal manager confirmed Henry will sign on a two-month loan for the Gunners, dependent on insurance agreements being worked out with New York Red Bulls.

Wenger revealed it was his idea to bring back the 34-year-old, who scored 226 times in 370 appearances for the club before moving to Barcelona in June 2007.

Wenger said: “You can never take away from people what they have done, that will remain forever. Nobody expects him to be what he was 10 years ago, we just want him to help out.

“I think it is just credit to him to be wanting to be helpful to a club that has given him so much. Therefore I feel there is no special pressure to be the player he was before.

“You cannot put too much pressure on him. He is here to help out, not to suddenly be the leader, the main player in the squad, and I respect his desire to help us get through a period where we lose two strikers.

“He and I are conscious that he is 34 years old, but he has not lost his class or his brain. That will be just enough for us.”

Wenger wants Henry, who is available until the MLS season restarts in March, to fill the supporting striker void which will be left when Marouane Chamakh and Gervinho leave for the African Nations Cup next month, although Arsenal are trying to delay their departure by two days to leave them available for the FA Cup tie against Leeds on January 9.

The Gunners boss insists Henry needs two weeks to be fully match fit but in theory he could be available for seven Premier League matches, including key encounters against Manchester United and Tottenham as well as FA Cup ties and Arsenal’s Champions League last-16 encounter against AC Milan.

On the prospect of Henry partnering the Premier League’s leading scorer Van Persie, Wenger said: “When they play together, we will do very well. They are two good players who can give the ball and score, so why should they not do well together?

“Robin van Persie is our main striker and it will remain like that.

“He (Henry) still has his pace, because he always had exceptional pace. What you lose with age is the capacity to repeat it.

“He still has class and quality. I don’t worry about him at all. He is there to help, nothing else.

“When we need him he will come on and play. He wants to help out for two months, because this is a club he loves.

“He has exceptional talent, he is a very intelligent man and has a desire to help the club, so it can only be positive.”

Wenger pointed to the success of former players Sol Campbell and Jens Lehmann, who also returned to the club in supporting roles.

“Our fans are happy that players who have done well for the club want to help out again,” Wenger said. “That is very positive. It shows that Arsenal have a special link with the players because we had Sol Campbell and Jens Lehmann who helped out for a while and did very well. Now we have Thierry, it is a continuity of the special link with our former players.”

Wenger, despite insisting the Henry deal was “certain to happen” did sound one note of caution.

He said: “The agreement and the insurance (still needs to be done), I don’t take care of that, but that is not completed and we need to respect all the agreements we need with the MLS to finalise the deal.”

He did, however, reveal he would not be signing any strikers on a permanent basis in the January transfer window “unless we lose players”.

Meanwhile, Theo Walcott has recovered from illness and is set to return against QPR on Saturday, and Wenger believes the Henry news will give the whole squad a boost.

He said: “The players are all happy that Thierry is coming back. You can always learn in life from people who have the knowledge like he has. That was one of the reasons why we brought Jens Lehmann and Sol Campbell back. They have a weight in the dressing room.”

The news on England midfielder Jack Wilshere’s ankle injury is also positive with a February return date a possibility.

Fulham star looking for win at Norwich

Fulham star Bryan Ruiz is targeting a win against Norwich to round off the year and believes the draw against Chelsea will give the Whites motivation to go on to produce the right result.

The Whites have had an up and down season, picking up points at Arsenal and Chelsea, but have lost to Swansea and Everton as well this campagin.

And the former FC Twente man is hoping to see his side climb into the top half with a victory over the Canaries.

“It was a great result on Monday against Chelsea and we played well which was good for us after the match against Manchester United last week,” Ruiz told the club’s official website.

“Chelsea are a very good team and they were playing at home on Boxing Day. They needed the points as well so it was a great result for us. We defended well and attacked when we could.

“We kept the ball more in midfield on Monday and created more chances. It was a good performance away from home and that’s how we hope to continue.

“We’re expecting a tough game against Norwich on Saturday and they are very close to us in the League – if we win we can pass them but it’s going to be tough. My wish for the New Year is to end this one with a win against Norwich!”