adminLONDON. — Arsene Wenger has explained he fears that doping could be rife in football. The matter has come into sharp focus after the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) published a report which accuses Russia’s athletics federation of running a doping programme.
The findings have raised the prospect of Russia’s track and field athletes being banned from competing in the 2016 Olympics.
Wenger’s side lost to Dynamo Zagreb in the Champions League in October when Arijan Ademi failed a drugs test for the Croatian outfit, although his “B” sample has yet to be determined.
And Wenger insists he has never asked his players to take performance-enhancing drugs.
“I try to be faithful to the values that I find important in life and to transmit them to others,” Wenger told L’Equipe Sport and Style.
“In 30 years of my coaching career, I never got one of my players injected to be more efficient.
“I never gave them a product that can improve performance. It is about pride. I’ve played against a lot of teams that were not in this state of mind.”
Wenger also thinks doping could call into question modern-day sporting achievements.
“Today, we will glorify he who runs 10.1 seconds and not the one who runs in 10.2 seconds. But they all run very fast anyway,” Wenger added.
“This is very dangerous in sport. It is happening in an era where we glorify whoever wins; whatever the method and means.”
Meanwhile, Wenger has heaped praise on Arsenal ace Mesut Ozil and has revealed he’s pleased by the way he’s developed.
The Germany international, who arrived at the Emirates in the summer of 2013, endured a difficult first season-and-a-half with the north Londoners and became a scapegoat for the team’s failures.
However, he has turned things around in recent months and has become an integral part of the current FA Cup holders’ starting XI.
Wenger (66) has been thrilled with the former Real Madrid ace’s recent displays, which have seen him rack up 10 assists this season, and believes the 27-year-old has transformed himself into a leader.
“He was outstanding again,” Wenger said after Sunday’s match against Tottenham.
“He has grown into a very great player as he has added commitment, leadership qualities and responsibility and I’m very pleased with his development.
“It was a very intense game. We have been unlucky as in the first half we played without Santi Cazorla at his full power. We suffered in the middle of the park as he is the guide in our game and he couldn’t even pass the ball so I took him off. — The Daily Express.
Online Reporter