ARSENALS poor performance against Besiktas has been blamed on the rigours of playing football for nearly a fortnight.

“Everyone has their limits”

The Gunners looked lethargic in their 0-0 draw in Turkey, with manager Arsene Wenger drawing attention to virtually non-stop football games his players have endured since August 10th.

Wenger said: “For ten whole days they’ve had to play or think about playing football. It’s a real achievement even to have made it as far as Istanbul, many of them barely slept on the plane.”

Arsenal captain Mikel Arteta added: “Remember, we had no rest from football over the summer. Many of the lads watched nearly all the World Cup games.

These aren’t excuses, they’re reasons.”

Arsenal fan Stephen Malley said: “In other countries, their seasons are almost finished by now.

It’s ridiculous that in England we don’t have a mid-season break between August and, let’s say, June.”