Robin van Persie has said that Arsenal should forget about playing beautiful football when it comes to crunch matches.

The Gunners have often been accused of putting pretty football above the will to win.

"Nobody can play beautiful football all the time," the Dutchman said. "When that happens I tell our lads 'If it's not happening for you, just try to kill off the game so we can move on'.

"I am still a lover of the beautiful game and always will be but I have become more realistic. It is too romantic to think that you can win matches by playing beautiful football alone.

"Barcelona are the exception, and I have to admit they and Arsenal are the only teams that I often watch on TV."

The 28-year-old has scored 15 goals in 16 Premier League games this season.