Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger says he believes in a zero tolerance approach towards racism but warns that there is still ‘a lot of work to do’ in England to achieve that.

In the wake of offence caused by comments made by Fifa president Sepp Blatter, in which he suggested that racial abuse on the pitch could be settled by a handshake after the match, the Gunners boss reaffirmed his commitment to fighting discrimination both on and off the field.

“I didn't really see all the comments but what I will say is that I am against any discrimination,” Wenger told reporters.

“I am for zero tolerance, on the pitch and off the pitch. In the stands and off the pitch. There is still a lot of work to do in England on that front.”

The French coach noted that awareness of the issue is better-developed in his native country as well as his current home.

“They take it [racism] seriously as well because we have a multi-ethnic society in France as in England,” he added.

“In countries where you have a lot of immigration, the problem is tackled a bit more seriously than in the other countries and rightly so. Overall, I think England is taking the right steps and is doing well on that front but there is still some work to do.

“Racist comments are unacceptable and any discrimination is unacceptable. Sport has a fantastic chance and a fantastic opportunity. Football is a worldwide sport watched all over the world and we have a massive responsibility in that.”

Wenger confirmed that he would like to see harsher punishments for those found guilty of racial abuse and emphasised that football could do good for the issue in society as a whole.

“I agree that punishments have not always been [harsh enough] and I believe there are still sometimes bad remarks but overall in my sport there is no deep racial problem,” he continued.

“Football gives you one chance and it is because you are selected on merit and it is easy to identify the merit. In normal society, the problem is much deeper.

“If you are a good player, you play. No matter where you come from. It is not always true in a normal society but in sport it is easy to identify how good you are. That’s why sport can be an example for society.”

A four-match winning streak in the league has seen the Gunners rise up to seventh after a terrible start, and while they still remain some distance from the top of the table, the Frenchman is looking to further narrow the divide.

“We are too far away from the top at the moment,” Wenger admitted to the club’s official website.

“My complete focus is to reduce that gap before Christmas and hopefully we can do that.

“Then in the second half of the season we play all of these teams at home, so if we can manage to do that we still have a chance to come back. But at the moment, we are too far.

“I don't know how realistic it is, but what I know is that we have to give absolutely everything to make it realistic.”

As he prepares to face Norwich City away on Saturday, Wenger suggested that his side’s impressive current run of form is all the stronger for it having started relatively late in the season.

“Our last game was a win so I believe we have the confidence from a good run,” the 62-year-old continued.

“After that it is down to being professional. A professional is capable of focusing on his targets and that is where we can show that. We need to focus again very quickly on our run.

“Maybe we are better in October and November now because we had a bad start.

“Basically we had many players out at the start of the season and we bought very late at the end of August. We just grabbed the momentum recently.

“I think the team is getting stronger from game to game so overall I expect that momentum to keep going and for us to go from strength to strength. Maybe we are on a stronger run because we started later.”

Arsenal sit in seventh position in the Premier League as they gear up to visit newly-promoted Norwich City, who are in ninth.