Arsene Wenger: In the first half ‘we were a bit scared’

The Gunners beat Chelsea 2-1 at the Emirates on Wednesday but in the first half they struggled to cope with the Blues’ intensity.

Having started in a 4-3-3 formation Arsenal dropped Mohamed Elneny deeper and switched back to a 3-4-3 and Chelsea had no answer.

After the game Wenger conceded that in the first half Arsenal had given their opponents too much respect.

"In the first half we gave Chelsea too much respect and distance. We were a bit scared to go for it and we suffered from that.” Wenger said.

"We were not playing in the right position but we amended that in the second half and took control of the game. We knew we could perform better in the second half and that's what we did. In the first half we watched them play a bit but we were tighter after the break.

"We lost a great player in Alexis Sanchez but when a team doesn't know what's going on in the dressing room there is less clarity and focus on performances. We know we have to deal with it now.

"We have some time to prepare for the final but we are happy to take our fans to Wembley. We've been there a few times now and we're happy to be going again."

Arsenal will now face Manchester City in the final on February 25th.