Arsene Wenger praised his players after the draw at Chelsea (Picture: Getty)

Arsene Wenger risked the wrath of Arsenal fans with his excuse for his side’s thumping at Liverpool when speaking after the goalless draw with Chelsea.

The Gunners were thrashed 4-0 at Anfield after goals from Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mane, Mohamed Salah and Daniel Sturridge but responded well with victories over Bournemouth and Koln.

Wenger praised his players for bouncing back after their hammering on Merseyside and blamed the defeat on the summer transfer window.

‘It was about mentality and a response from our last away game,’ the Frenchman said after Arsenal’s draw at Stamford Bridge.

Arsenal were taught a lesson by Liverpool at Anfield (Picture: Getty)

‘We could have won it. It was an intense game.

‘The battle was total. We are not in a transfer period and on the day we played Liverpool that affected us. We are all human beings.

‘If you play 55 games a season you can have a bad performance.’

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