LONDON - Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has said he is not blaming striker Olivier Giroud for the Champions League defeat to Monaco.
Giroud missed a string of chances in a stunning 3-1 first-leg loss at Emirates Stadium, with the Gunners now facing a huge task to progress from the round of 16.
Wenger, speaking to reporters at the club's London Colney training base, said: "He is, like everyone else, disappointed.
"I hope it will not affect him, but he is a strong character. Personally, I don't blame him at all. We lost as a team, and we fight for each other as a team.
"He worked hard for the team on the night. He didn't miss the chances on purpose -- he wanted to score the goals. But it can happen.
"There is nobody to blame individually. On the night, everything went against us. The fact that we missed some chances was only one of the characteristics of the night."
#INSERT type:image caption:Wenger has backed Giroud after the striker's tough night against Monaco. END#
Wenger's side take on Everton at Emirates Stadium on Sunday, and he said: "What is important now is to respond well.
"We are on a strong run in the Premier League, and we have to respond to the disappointment in a strong way on Sunday. That's all we can do.
"It is a different competition, we are back into the top three in the Premier League. We have an opportunity to stabilise this position and we want to take it."
Wenger said it was part of his job to deal with the strong opinions that surround his team's performances, with defeats increasingly seen as crises.
"We have to live with that," he said. "We are a big club, and that means we are a club that interests many people.
"When you come out of a disappointing game like Wednesday night, you don't expect people to applaud. It is absolutely normal that we get criticised.
"What is hurting is the defeat more than the criticism. I do not say I'm immune to it. I love to win and when I don't win, I'm hurt, of course."