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Sokratis: 'Arsenal not out of top-four race'

Sokratis: 'Arsenal not out of top-four race'
© Reuters
The Gunners round off their campaign with games against Leicester, Brighton and Burnley.

Sokratis Papastathopoulos accepts Arsenal must win their remaining three Premier League matches to give themselves a chance of finishing in the top four – but he believes they can do it.

The Gunners' hopes of qualifying for the Champions League are out of their own hands after Wednesday's 3-1 defeat to Wolves left them a point behind rivals Chelsea.

Arsenal have away games at Leicester and Burnley left to play, either side of facing Brighton at the Emirates Stadium.

Sokratis, who scored in the loss at Molineux, thinks taking the maximum nine points from those fixtures is within the Gunners' capabilities.

"We have to look at the next three games where we need to win all three to get nine points," he told the club's official website.

"We'll see if we can be in the top four. I trust my team 100 per cent, all of the players. I think we can do it.

"We know that we didn't play well but we now have three chances and we have to win all the games.

"Of course (we get angry). The players want to play in the Champions League, we like winning and we want to be there. It's not easy.

"We look towards the next game (at Leicester). It's a difficult game. We know that now the chance could go, so we have to take the three points in all three games. I hope that we win on Sunday."

Wolves' win enhanced their own chances of securing European football for next season as they moved back into seventh place in the table – which will be enough for a Europa League spot should Manchester City win next month's FA Cup final against Watford.

Matt Doherty, who scored Wanderers' second goal against Arsenal, told the club's official website: "We're seventh again, and that's where we want to finish.

"That might give us a chance of playing European football and we want to challenge ourselves, so playing in Europe is the next step."

Arsenal became the latest of the Premier League's top-six clubs to taste defeat at Molineux, where Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United have also been beaten this season.

Doherty said: "We've had a great season. Maybe our performances against the top six might lead some people to believe that we've over-achieved, but personally I don't believe that we have.

"We just need to make sure we finish the season off strongly now."

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Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Arsenal34245582265677
2Manchester CityMan City33237380324876
3Liverpool34228475344174
4Aston Villa34206871502166
5Tottenham HotspurSpurs32186865491660
6Manchester UnitedMan Utd33165125150153
7Newcastle UnitedNewcastle331551369541550
8West Ham UnitedWest Ham34139125463-948
9Chelsea32138116157447
10Bournemouth34129134960-1145
11Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton331111115254-244
12Wolverhampton WanderersWolves34127154654-843
13Fulham34126165054-442
14Crystal Palace34109154456-1239
15Brentford3498175259-735
16Everton34118153648-1233
17Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest3479184260-1826
18Luton TownLuton3467214775-2825
19Burnley3458213769-3223
20Sheffield UnitedSheff Utd3437243392-5916


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