Both summer signings started on Wednesday as Arsenal eased into the round three of the Carabao Cup with a 6-0 win at West Bromwich Albion.
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Arsenal fans were treated to their first sight of new signing Aaron Ramsdale during the comfortable 6-0 win over West Bromwich Albion on Wednesday. Another new addition – Martin Odegaard – also featured on Wednesday night. Both summer signings started as the Gunners eased into round three of the Carabao Cup with a 6-0 win at The Hawthorns. The duo did their job admirably on the night, with Ramsdale keeping a clean sheet and Odegaard setting up Bukayo Saka’s goal with a sublime backheel. “That’s what he can do,” manager Mikel Arteta told Arsenal Media after the game, when asked about Odegaard’s assist.
“He’s really comfortable in those areas. He loves drifting into that right-side pocket, coming deep and he needs freedom to play. He needs players around him to follow and understand him because the moment he has time on the ball he’s a real threat. He glides players together. He attracts players. He’s really confident on the ball. He can take the ball anywhere on the pitch and he gives us that continuity. I think tonight he was really good.”
Arteta also liked what he saw from Ramsdale. “I think it was a really strong debut. You can see his personality, he’s comfortable on the ball and I’m really glad for him,” he added.
Mikel Arteta, in his post-match press conference, also emphasised the importance of winning a game quickly after losing one. “When you lose a game, you have to win as quickly as possible. Today’s match is going to give us some confidence. We had some players playing their first minutes – for example Auba – so to get some minutes and score three goals is going to be great for his confidence. Overall I think [it was] a really positive night,” he added.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored a hat-trick in the dominant victory on Wednesday night. Speaking about his qualities, Arteta said, “I said at the beginning [that] the leadership, the solutions and the tools to win football matches has to come from the senior players. The rest has to be complemented to that with the energy, the vibe and the passion that they bring to the group, and not the opposite way around. I think tonight was a good example.”
On starting Aubameyang through the middle, he explained, “I think Auba is really comfortable playing in either position and we have Laca as a nine as well. He came on later on. With the players we had available today and the plan [we had], we believed it was better to play Auba up front.”
Speaking about what the win does for the mood, Mikel Arteta said, “The spirit has been really positive, to be fair. I’m really pleased to win tonight, to score six goals away from home, to get a clean sheet and to be in the next round. But I’m even more pleased about the preparation during the last two days and the togetherness and dedication the players are showing, how much they want to turn the situation around. I’m really happy for them and for the fans – that we can give them something to cheer, because we had a lot of supporters here tonight.”
He was asked whether having away fans at Manchester City on Saturday gives the players more of a motivational feel. “Winning always helps but the motivation and the desire to go to Manchester and try to win the match is not going to change at all. It’s great to see the support that we got from the fans today. They came all the way here to give us support on a midweek night. The players were talking about it – and [now it’s about] getting ready mentally and physically to go to Manchester and try to win,” he added.
