RVP fully committed to Gunners

RVP fully committed to Gunners

Published Feb. 20, 2011 12:54 p.m. ET

Robin van Persie has revealed that he could not imagine leaving Arsenal as he is devoted to playing a full part in the club's bid for honours.

The Dutchman has been in fantastic form for the Gunners since the turn of the year to keep their dreams of an unprecedented Quadruple on track.

He had been sidelined for a couple of months with an ankle injury earlier in the campaign, having also missed a large part of last season.

Van Persie believes he had been written off in some quarters whilst he was out of action and is delighted to have silenced the doubters by returning to top form.

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"I think some people had forgotten me a little bit. I could sense that when I scored my hat-trick against Wigan," he said in the Daily Mail.

"I had the feeling that some people were surprised that I'd ever come back and do that for my club.

"Reading one or two articles was quite interesting, because apparently a few people didn't really think that I would come back as strong a player as I'd previously been.

"In my opinion that was never going to be the case, but that lack of pressure (of expectations) gave me the time to come back.

"When you don't play, people can forget you really quickly. There's always a new player, a new thing, football can change in one game.

"Now that I've come back with some goals, it's a new story for people and journalists might say 'He can make them champions' - but that's not the case, either."

Arsenal's challenge for silverware has fallen away at this time of year over the past few seasons but there is little sign of a repeat this term.

Arsene Wenger's men beat Barcelona in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League last-16 tie in midweek, while they are still in the hunt for the Premier League title and have the Carling Cup final against Birmingham to look forward to next weekend.

A trip to Leyton Orient in the fifth round of the FA Cup on Sunday is the immediate priority and Van Persie is excited about what the club could achieve this season.

Despite having not won anything since 2005, the striker is proud to have been part of the young team's progression over the past few years and maintains that he could never contemplate a move elsewhere.

"I don't have the inclination to go anywhere," he explained. "This is the best team for me to be in.

"The bottom line is that I want to win trophies with Arsenal, not with anybody else.

"I know you can win trophies in many countries and in many ways, but I want to do that in our way and in an Arsenal shirt.

"I'm sure I could win things at another team in another country, but would it feel like our trophy, my trophy? I'm not sure it would.

"Anything we win here will come from the heart and that's what I want. It's my dream and I see no point in speaking about other teams when I have these dreams.

"I think other people know that about me; I'm just hungry to win with Arsenal and that's it."

Van Persie pinpoints the 3-1 victory over Chelsea after Christmas as the moment Arsenal came of age and first perfected their high intensity game of harrying the opposition.

"For me, that game against Chelsea was a big turning point. We'd had a couple of more average games around it so the pressure was on, we needed to win the game to catch up and we all worked our socks off," he added.

"That pressing game can be great but everyone needs to do it. If one guy doesn't participate, you're lost.

"So it's a risky way to play, but if everyone is sharp and ready to run for each other it can be beautiful. We've been working hard on it and I think you can tell."

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