WILLIAM GALLAS promises the Premier League bullies will be in for a nasty shock when they try to kick Arsenal this season.
Because the kids have grown up — and now they are ready to kick back.
French defender Gallas believes Arsene WengerÂ’s young team have been regarded as a soft touch for too long.
But he is adamant that is all about to change and makes it clear the Gunners will no longer be an easy target for the rough stuff.
Gallas, 29, said: “I don’t know exactly what has happened but something has changed within the club this summer.
“Opponents will not be able to kick Arsenal any more. We are ready to give our answer to that sort of thing.
“Our players now understand how they have to play at certain times. We know we can always score at any time because we have so much quality up front.
“But now we also realise we have to fight, to be compact and defend very well. All the players have benefited from the experience of last year and understand the demands of football in the Premier League.
“Sometimes it is not enough just to play good football when the other team is hitting long balls all the time.
“We have to be ready to fight and I think this season we can be physical enough to deal with that side of the game.”
Gallas recently questioned the clubÂ’s ambitions after allowing captain and top scorer Thierry Henry to leave for Barcelona.
But he has been won over by ArsenalÂ’s fighting spirit during their recent triumphs in the Emirates Cup and the Amsterdam Tournament.
WengerÂ’s youngsters were subjected to a brutal kicking from Ajax during SaturdayÂ’s warm-up in the Amsterdam Arena. Yet they stood up to the challenge and emerged with a 1-0 win.
Gallas added: “In the past week we have beaten Paris St Germain, Inter Milan, Lazio and Ajax.
“I could just sense that the spirit in the squad was different. Everyone was fighting for their team-mates.
“It made me realise they are ready for this season. They won’t be bullied this time.
“No one will be able to call them kids any more and age will no longer be an excuse for not doing well.
“They are young players who really want to win a trophy this time. They don’t want people to be saying, ‘Oh yes, Arsenal — they are still kids’.
“And when we train together I don’t see kids. I only see players who are ready for the fight.”
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In the past it was Tony Adams, Martin Keown and Patrick Vieira who acted as the teamÂ’s protectors when things got rough.
Now Gallas is ready to take on that role. The Frenchman insisted: “I have a lot of personality when I am on the pitch. I like to fight because I hate to lose. Sometimes you have to speak to the other players, to make sure they know what they need to do.
“Nobody can say for certain who is going to win the Premier League this time.
“A lot of clubs are ready to challenge for the title. It is not just Manchester United and Chelsea. Arsenal can beat them.”
Gallas, who joined Arsenal as part of the deal which took Ashley Cole to Chelsea last summer, admits that Gunners fans have yet to see the best of him.
He said: “Last season was not easy for me. It was a period of adaptation when a lot of things were happening in my life. Now I have been here for a year and I am ready.”
Gallas was speaking at the launch of the Premier League’s Creating Chances scheme, a plan aimed at distributing £120million into youth development and community projects next season.
The outspoken Frenchman insists that none of the players ever discusses the dreaded possibility of manager Wenger leaving when his Arsenal contract expires next year.
But he is more forthcoming when it comes to the topic of his close friend Henry’s £16m move to Barcelona.
Gallas said: “I am a good friend of Thierry so I wasn’t surprised when he went because I speak to him all the time.
“It was his decision to go and no one can question that. Everyone knows what a great player he is
and what a good job he did for Arsenal.
“I hope he will be happy with Barcelona — but now he has left and we have to move on.
“We have to prove we can play without him and I am very confident the players we have at Arsenal are good enough to replace him.
“There has been a lot of talk about Tottenham and other teams finishing above Arsenal this season . . . well, we’ll see about that.
“Tottenham want to finish above us and we will do everything to make sure that does not happen.
“But our aim is not to finish above Tottenham. It is to finish in front of everyone and win the title.”
