Arsene Wenger has warned his Arsenal side that they face missing out on Champions League football next season if they continue to drop points, the Guardian reports.

Defeat at the hands of Chelsea on Sunday left the Gunners seven points adrift of North London rivals Tottenham in fourth and the Emirates Stadium boss admits his side need to beat their psychological demons and take the initiative in games if they're to bridge that gap.

"We have lost two big games in the last week and that's very damaging for us," he said. "We cannot afford to drop points any more if we want to be in the top four. This was very similar to last week.

"The team has fantastic quality and spirit but we only come into the game when we're 2-0 down. At the moment, that's worrying. In the big games, once you start 2-0 down, it's very difficult."

Wenger bemoaned his side's lack of self belief at Stamford Bridge, conceding they were second best for much of the game and made it easy for the Blues before Theo Walcott's second half goal.

"Chelsea played well at the start but we were not well positioned on the pitch and were stretched, giving them too much room to play," he added.

"We didn't defend tight enough and allowed them to play where they wanted.

"There's a psychological part of it, for sure, because we didn't really go for it at the start again.The team have to believe more in the quality we have."

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