Gilberto - We will come back even stronger

Arsenal v AC Milan



Gilberto has urged his team-mates to bounce back against Milan on Wednesday so "they don't let the opportunity to win a trophy slip by".

Like his manager, Arsenal's Brazilian midfielder offered no excuses for Saturday's 4-0 beating at Manchester United in the FA Cup Fifth Round. The visitors were clearly second-best on the day.

However, as everybody knows, the priorities this season have always been the Premier League and Champions League. So, according to Gilberto, any lethargy and despondency must be shaken off before Milan visit Emirates Stadium on Wednesday in the last 16 of the latter competition.

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"Of course we can bounce back," he said. "In their last game Manchester United had a disappointing result against Manchester City and they came back strong in the next game. It is the same for us now.

"All of us are disappointed in the way that we played. But we will come back even stronger in the next game. We don’t want to let this opportunity slip by.

"We must do it if we want to achieve something because this group is very ambitious to win a trophy this season. Of course we are disappointed we were knocked out of the FA Cup.

"Now we must just think about Milan, put the result behind us and perform better at home."

There have been suggestions that this result demonstrates Manchester United's strength in depth compared to Arsenal - perhaps a crucial component in the title run-in. However, the visiting fans sang "we'll be back to win the League" and Gilberto supported their confidence.

"Of course," he answered when asked if his squad was still the stronger. "You would if you had seen our games since the start of the competition and now we are five points clear. For a young team this is not that easy.

"It is important to keep our consistency in the League now. It is also important for us to take advantage of the situation that is in our favour, learn from our mistakes and not let this sort of result happen again in the next game."