Mikel Arteta faced the media ahead of Arsenal’s UEFA Champions League clash with Inter Milan at San Siro. The Gunners know that one win in their next two matches will guarantee them a top-two finish in the league phase.
Arteta has recently welcomed Cristhian Mosquera back to the squad after a period of absence. The increased squad size also allows both Ethan Nwaneri and Christian Norgaard to travel and join the team after missing the clash with Nottingham Forest.
Arsenal have the consideration of the clash with Manchester United at the weekend to contend with as well, and after their surprise win over Manchester City, it has added extra emphasis to the affair just five days after the trip to Italy.
Here is every word Mikel Arteta said during the press conference:
On the weekend's results
Well, we weren't satisfied with the results, obviously. Watching the game back more and then with the other results even more, obviously. But I think it shows the competitiveness of every match, where the league is at the moment, how difficult and how much we have to value every point and every win because you really have to earn it in the league.
And now, change the scenario, we are back in the Champions League, here again a year later and ready for tomorrow.
100% record in the Champions League. Away at Inter Milan, a team you played last season as well. What are you expecting from them tomorrow night?
Well, a very similar context to last year, obviously where the two teams are at the moment is a bit different. A new manager as well, I think he has given them some of the things in their identity and the way they play. But obviously, a super competitive team, a team that is dominating the league and a really tough game.
Fitness update, please. Piero Hincapie, Ricardo Calafiori, Max Dowman weren't in training so I expect they're not available for tomorrow.
Yup.
Cristhian Mosquera, Kai Havertz, both in the squad?
Yup.
And is there any other fitness updates you can speak to?
No, that's all.
And then, it was a tough day for Viktor Gyokeres at Nottingham Forest at the weekend, a game that probably came after his best performance for Arsenal against Chelsea. Does that show the scrutiny of being an Arsenal forward or does he need to do better?
I think it goes for all the nines in the league and how difficult it is to play that position nowadays with the physicality, with the dominance of the centre-backs and the quality of them and the lack of spaces as well in most of the times during the match for them to exploit. But that's about consistency, about going again. We know his work rate, he's really trying to give his best and we need to continue to work.
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How important is this game against Inter, not only to try and secure that top-two finish but also for the momentum of your season?
Yes, for that because every game in the Champions League, when you have the opportunity to achieve something, you have to grab it, and tomorrow we're really going to have to earn it against a top, top side. We know that and then we prepare every game obviously to win it and the urgency is going to be the same tomorrow.
Are you having to think about your team selection in particular with this game? You've had four away games in a row, well it will be the fourth one and you've got a huge game on Sunday against Manchester United.
It's very particular for every game I'm afraid because every game has a different situation, the players are in different stages as well and we prepare the game, the line-up and the finishers in the best possible manner to win the game.
Just how big a challenge has it been, those four away games? I think it's happened three times now in your tenure here at Arsenal to have four away games in four different competitions.
That's the first time, no?
I mean, I did a bit of research, it looked like it's happened twice before, I could be completely wrong, I'll probably trust you more but how big a challenge has it been because we've just gone through a period of time notoriously when there's loads of fixtures during the Christmas time, now you've had four in ten days all away from home.
Yeah, we have to adapt to that. That's the beauty of playing in different competitions and being in the latest stages of those in all of them and that's what we want. So I think that's a blessing, that's something really, really positive and tomorrow we have the last one before we play at home again against United.
I know we always talk about the next game is the most important game and Dharmesh asked you about the Manchester United fixture. Is this a week where the next two games are the most important games and they both kind of blend into one another?
We keep tricking the players and the next one is the most important one this season and then three days later the same [he jokes]. That's the demands, that's the expectations that we have, that's the standard that we have set as well as a team and as a club and we are living with that with joy, with enthusiasm and with a lot of energy as requested.
And if I may ask you a tactical question. You have played with inverted wingers with right footers on the left and left footers on the right. Stylistically, how does that work? Why do you benefit most from choosing that style of set-up and why is that the way you approach wing play?
Well sometimes it's about the preference of the players, where they feel more comfortable and the way we are raising players at the moment, most of them want to play with inverted footed, they feel much more comfortable as well. In the manner that we play, we adapt to that, we adapt to the qualities. The fact that in some areas we have only inverted footers, especially on the left unit, is not ideal when that happens, but we adapt to the circumstances and what we have available.
Do you think you're going to make a few changes tomorrow?
Let's see. After tomorrow, after a really good night of sleep, we'll see how it goes.
What's the difference between the Arsenal team that's going to play tomorrow night and the one that was here last season? Due to the experiences that you had both in the Champions League and in the Premier League, how much stronger are you?
Well they have some different players as well, let’s see, a different coach for them as well. I think the task is going to be equally difficult, but I think we had watching back a really strong performance here, the margin that we lost the game by a penalty that obviously we all saw what happened there, very disappointed. So yeah, we're going to know tomorrow how they set up.
We have a very clear idea what we have to do to win the game and we'll try to apply that to be better than them.
Arsenal are the only team in the Champions League this season that are unbeaten. Do you think that from here to the next round that the results here in terms of obviously, bar a miracle, you are going to go through to the last 16, but can that run possibly have an impact on the last 16 and onwards in terms of form and whatnot?
I don't know, performance and result have an impact emotionally on the team to a level of confidence, and we know that the match tomorrow is to come here and win the game. That's a step that we didn't do last year, and we have to show that we are better than last year.
One player that's quite noticeable from the Forest game was Martin Odegaard, I think in the game when he had one pass in the final third across the whole match. In terms of going forward, are you tempted to start Eberechi Eze? And what more does the Eze need to do to possibly break into this team?
Depends on the game, depends on the type of opponent that we see and then performances throughout the game. We see things that we can do, how we can hurt the opposition more, and we have the ability to change that.
I think it's your 33rd game of the season tomorrow, and just looking ahead, it could be, I think, a 65-game season if you get all the way in all four competitions. Do you think everything that your squad has been through to this point tells you that you can cope with that?
Yes, but I think we have to go game by game. We can try to look ahead, but what is coming and what is relevant is the next match. Sometimes we've been thinking a lot about the future the next week or two or three weeks time and something happens that you have to adapt to the circumstances.
Go game by game, enjoy the journey that we are in because it's great and go for it every single game and let's see what the next one brings.
How important is it then for you that you've got the top eight finished so you don't have the two extra games?
That's massive, we know that. If we win tomorrow we know that's going to be the case so let's make it happen. We'll take some questions from Italian media now.
