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Arsenal's Carl Jenkinson praises stand-in captain Per Mertesacker

06 September 2013 - 11:51

Arsenal right-back Carl Jenkinson has hailed the club's stand-in captain Per Mertesacker for his leadership qualities.<br /><br />The German International defender was given the captain's armband by the Gunners boss Arsene Wenger this season, following injuries to Thomas Vermaelen and Mikel Arteta.<br /><br />Jenkinson has expressed that Mertesacker's positive attitude towards the game has had a great influence on his teammates.<br /><br />Jenkinson told reporters : <em>"Per's been here a while now and is very comfortable with his surroundings, he's playing well at the moment and proving a good leader. <br /><br />"It's important that the whole back four is talking to one another &ndash; if I'd had one criticism in the past it's that we haven't talked enough when doing so makes everything so much easier for everyone on the pitch.<br /><br />"Per has taken everything on board and is doing a lot of organising out there. It's something we all need to do if we are to push on and keep things tight as a defensive unit. Bacary [Sagna] has played there and he has proved he is exceptional so it's not an issue.<br /><br />"In the past few games we have adapted fantastically. I think we've adapted fantastically. I think we've done incredibly well &ndash; it'll be a big boost when Thomas is fit again but everyone who has played so far has done their job and we want to keep that going."</em><br /><br />The Gunners have so far won four out of the five matches in all competitions, in which Per Mertesacker has wore the captain's armband.

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Written by Sri Aswin