Robin van Persie: We must make the Champions League

LEVEL BEST... Robin van Persie will pull out all the stops to keep Arsenal in a Champions League qualifying spot

WE have worked hard to get back into the Champions League qualifying places — and we must stay there.

That is why we have to get three points against Chelsea today.

I am sure it’s not going to be an easy game for us. Chelsea are also going to give it their all.

They also want to qualify for the Champions League as well as make up for their 5-3 loss against us at Stamford Bridge.

And they will do this with confidence after their win over Barcelona.

I have watched the game and saw how well they defended their lead. That is the danger of Chelsea, their counter-attack.

We have to be at our best and forget the loss over Wigan. It was a tough game last Monday.

To concede two early goals at home is not how you want to start a game. Wigan played very well — credit to them. After they took the lead they defended very well.

It was hard for us to pick through their defence and create proper chances. It was a bad night for us.

That is what is so strange and so exciting about the Premier League which doesn’t happen anywhere else in Europe.

You cannot take it for granted that you will win against teams at the bottom.

They fight for their lives and if you lose concentration — as we did — you will get punished.

We want to make up for it. As long as we play our game and keep focused, we can beat anybody.

I have to mention what a shame it is that we have lost Mikel Arteta for the rest of the season on top of the news that Jack Wilshere’s season is over and he won’t play at the Euros.

Mikel has been a great signing since he arrived from Everton.

As for Jack it is a sad end to a miserable season. It has been a blow for us to be without the services of such an exceptional player.

Now he has to concentrate on being fit for the start of next season.

England will miss Jack, but his long-term health is the most important thing and Arsenal and England will get the benefits once he comes back completely fit and ready to go.

There is a big issue in the game right now over goalline technology.

My view is it has to be brought in to stop mistakes happening like in the FA Cup semi-final last Sunday.

Everyone watching on television could see that Juan Mata’s shot didn’t cross the line but the referee gave the goal. These mistakes happen, but they can be avoided.

I know as an Arsenal player it sounds weird but for a split second I did have some sympathy for Spurs.

Although Chelsea went on to win the match 5-1, that was clearly a big turning point in the game.

We should use whatever technology we have to make sure important decisions like that are the correct ones.

We train so hard all week to make sure the ball in a match crosses the line, and then if it is taken away from you wrongly or given against you it can be extremely frustrating.

The stakes are very high and it’s a simple solution we must get right.

They have technology in a lot of other major sports and it works very well. Football should follow suit.

This is the biggest sport in the world and we should be using every resource available to ensure the result is fair.