Wenger warning to stars

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger claims it would be 'criminal' to suggest that his young stars could not secure the success they desire at Emirates Stadium.

The Gunners had looked to be title candidates for the majority of the season, but their recent defeat to Manchester United at Old Trafford ended those aspirations.

Arsenal were also eliminated from the UEFA Champions League at the quarter-final stage by Liverpool to leave the Gunners, who were unsuccessful in this season's Carling Cup and FA Cup, facing another campaign without a trophy.

"You can go to Real Madrid and Barcelona, but you have no more guarantees to win trophies," said Wenger, who saw his side return to winning ways with a 2-0 home victory over Reading on Saturday.

"From this season we should get the belief we can win trophies and come back to win the title.

"It would be criminal not to believe we could do it because we were so close this year.

"We could have gone unbeaten this season as well as we only lost three games, and if you look at how we lost them, we were not far from that level (of consistency).

"That is why I am so insistent that I keep this team together and that we try to come back and have a good go next year.

"We have a very young team with a great future."