Ljungberg calls for patient approach

Fredrik Ljungberg knows all about patience. A succession of injuries has made sure of that, restricting his appearances and preventing him from making the sustained impact this season Arsenal FC fans have become accustomed to.

Enthusiasm
Now back to fitness, the Sweden midfielder believes patience will be key if Arsenal are to overturn a 1-0 first-leg deficit at home to PSV Eindhoven in the first knockout round of the UEFA Champions League. "It's always good to have enthusiasm and not be scared of the occasion, but I think at the same time we need to have patience in the game," he said. "If we don't score in the first minute, we'll just keep on going, play our game and not get frustrated.

Cool heads
"They're going to defend very deep, so even if after 70 minutes it is still 0-0, we will have to keep cool heads and keep on playing our game. In the end I think we'll score. The way we play football, it is important that we keep our patience. Of course, we could put a couple of centre-backs up front and put the ball in the box, but that's not the way we play. We want to keep belief in our game and keep on playing like that for 90 minutes."

Wenger belief
Ljungberg, 29, brings experience to a youthful Arsenal side at a crucial time. Defeats in both domestic cups have left the UEFA Champions League as the only realistic route to silverware, and manager Arsène Wenger thinks a rejuvenated Ljungberg could yet have a telling part to play this term.

A winner
"The positive thing is, he's fresh," Wenger said. "His season has been disturbed by many injuries - small ones, but one after another. For a top player, when you are out physically for a period it is very difficult to be sharp, but in the last two games he has been very sharp and really to his best. Freddie likes March, when things become very important. He's a winner and always has the extra little resources in the big games to make the difference."

Hopeful
Ljungberg certainly hopes so. "I'm looking forward to the game. We were in the final last year and we don't want to go out at this stage this season. [Losing in Paris] was a major disappointment and still hurts, so we definitely want to go through."