Gunners boss hopes trip to Bavaria will not leave his side suffering.
Arsene Wenger has admitted that Arsenal could suffer mentally if they are knocked out of the Champions League against Bayern Munich next week.
The Arsenal boss has watched his side crash out of the FA Cup and lose a crucial Premier League match to rivals Tottenham, either side of a 3-1 home defeat against the Bavarians in their Champions League last-16 first leg.
The Frenchman insisted the players have no choice but to stand firm against the mounting pressure.
“Of course, you are not feeling great if you can’t win, but we can stay solid or crack under the pressure,” Wenger told Eurosport.
“If you want to know, I am still solid but I can’t tell you that I feel great right now because my job is about winning games and when you lose you will not find a single coach in this world who feels good.”
The Gunners have been criticised for their lack of mental strength this season, with concentration lapses letting them down at key times.
Wenger admitted he is concerned about his squad’s mental fragility and says the trip to the Allianz Arena could do more damage, even though progression to the quarter-finals remains unlikely.
“I am not worried about us potentially coming back against Bayern, I am more worried about consequences that could manifest in the heads of our players.
“You will never know how they can absorb those blows and how the team responds to disappointment. This is the most worrying aspect for me.
“But from the experience of how to handle the end of the season, we know how to deal with that. We have had lots of experience.”
The Frenchman reiterated that Arsenal’s priority is now to qualify for next season’s Champions League and says the squad’s recovery from Sunday’s 2-1 defeat at Tottenham will ‘define’ the remainder of their campaign.
“We are in a situation right now where our objective is just to qualify for the Champions League – so we can’t drop points any more.
“Contrary to our two cup defeats we are on a good run in the Premier League actually – with the two big blows in just three days in the cups. We need to recover, and that will define the rest of our season.”
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