The Gunners boss has blamed the title collapses of 2008 and 2011 on the immaturity of his side and players being "tapped-up" respectively
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has blamed the club's lack of Premier League titles on wantaway players.
Wenger has come under criticism for the Gunners' current title drought as they are yet to win the league since the year of the 'Invincibles' in 2003/04 - winning by an eventual 11-point margin.
Arsenal came close to ending their wait in 2008 when they were five points clear of Manchester United in February, yet finished third after a poor run of form following a horrific injury to Eduardo.
In 2011, the Gunners were just four points behind league-leaders United at the same stage of the season, only to fade away to finish 12 points adrift and end the season in fourth.
Yet Wenger claims their lack of focus that year was due to players looking to leave the club, as proved correct when Gael Clichy, Cesc Fabregas and Samir Nasri departed just months later.
“What is different is that at that time we were losing momentum," he told reporters ahead of their crunch tie with old foes United on Sunday.
Van Gaal: Arsenal are on a different level
"This time it’s the opposite. We are chasing and gaining momentum. We have had two difficult games recently but overall the psychological situation is quite different.
"We were very young at those times, with the famous incident with [William] Gallas at Birmingham [who cried on the pitch in the middle of a 2-2 draw in which Arsenal threw away their lead].
"And the mood of some players was to get the next contract somewhere else rather than to win the championship because we had to sell.
"When we went into April some players were tapped up to go somewhere else and it was difficult to maintain the focus. That’s not the case at the moment.
"Now we don’t have that problem at all. All the players are focused and want to win and have great solidarity.
"It’s down to showing how good we are. The psychological situation is completely different.
"In 2011, we lost it because the spirit was not exactly what it should be because of tap-ups. At the moment, I think on the spirit front we are all right."
- Goal