Arsene Wenger said Jack Wilshere had 'put in his mind that he can score goals '

Published: 27 November, 2013
By TOM FOOT at the Emirates

Champions League, Group F
ARSENAL 2, MARSEILLE 0

JACK Wilshere sent an "anything you can do, I can do better" message to team-mate Aaron Ramsey with his match-winning brace in the Champions League.

Arsene Wenger said the Arsenal number 10 was aspiring to score goals after Ramsey's blazing start to the season.

He said: "He's starting to think, what Ramsey can do, I can do better. He has put in his mind that he can score goals as well."

Arsenal have the luxury of topping the so-called “group of death” with a game to spare after a comfortable victory over Marseille.

The goals from Wilshere saw Arsenal make it four wins out of five games in Group F and edged them towards the knockout stages.

Dortmund's defeat of Napoli means the Gunners are three points clear of both sides ahead of a final tie in Naples.

Wenger said: "We have to go there and think positive and get the win."

Flamini returned from injury in a midfield that boasted Ramsey, Ozil, Wilshere and Rosicky. Cazorla, Walcott and Arteta were left on the bench.

Wenger had warned of the pitfalls of a false sense of security in his pre-match notes, pointing to the visitors’ two-game winning run in the French league.

But Wilshere stunned Marseille on 23 seconds after checking back from a powerful run down the right wing and looping a pinpoint strike into the top corner of the net. Ramsey should have made it two five minutes later when he was denied by a Peter Schmeichel-like, point-blank range stop from keeper Mandanda.

Ozil had two shocking touches in good positions as complacency began to creep into the home side's build-up play. Marseille striker Saber Khalifa bungled a great opportunity on 23 minutes.

On 38 minutes, Ramsey was wrongly judged to have been fouled inside the box but Ozil limply missed the spot kick.

"That's good news for England," Wenger joked of the German after the match.

It was one-way traffic and there had been big shouts for another penalty when Giroud was hauled down in the box. But Arsenal went in at the break just 1-0 up and with fans wondering if the Gunners would rue their missed opportunities.

Wilshere sealed the tie on 65 minutes, passing into the net from an Ozil square ball.

Florian Thauvin did force a big save from Szczesny on 78 minutes but the three points were never in doubt.

Arsenal: Wojciech Szczesny, Bacary Sagna, Per Mertesacker, Laurent Koscielny, Tomas Rosicky (Cazorla 75), Jack Wilshere (Walcott 75), Mesut Ozil, Olivier Giroud, Aaron Ramsey, Nacho Monreal, Matthieu Flamini.
Attendance: 59,912