Mikel Arteta’s side are entering this game on the back of throwing away a 2-0 goal lead against Liverpool in their last match.
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Arsenal are set for a difficult Premier League challenge away to West Ham United on Sunday. With the title race heating up, every point becomes important for the Gunners. Mikel Arteta’s side are entering this game on the back of throwing away a 2-0 goal lead against Liverpool in their last match. Therefore, this game on Sunday becomes extra important for Arsenal to get the maximum points.
Ahead of the match, Arteta spoke about his respect for his former boss David Moyes. When Arteta was a player for Everton, he was being managed by Moyes. On Sunday though Moyes will be in the opposite dugout as West Ham United manager. Asked about what he’s expecting against West Ham, Arteta, as quoted by arsenal.com, said in a press conference, “[It will be a] very difficult game.”
“We know, we’ve been there a few times and we always find really tricky and difficult games. I know David really well and how he’s going to prepare for the game as well, and we are ready. It’s going to be a fight; it’s going to be another big derby for us and we’re going to be at our best to win it.”
He then spoke about his respect for David Moyes, saying, “More than respect, I think it’s admiration. I loved playing under him, I would go through a brick wall for him when he was my manager, as everybody would in that squad. [He’s] a really good coach, exceptional at managing the group and dealing with individuals, and he’s a very special person, very trustworthy, and a man who honours his word. He always did it and he’s someone I learnt a lot from.”
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On what he learnt from Moyes, Arteta replied, “Yes, some things in me that I didn’t know, and he asked me to play in positions that I’ve never played in my life. The way he challenged me, but at the same time the way he gave me support, love and care – it was the right balance and it’s what I needed, and he got the best out of me. So, he was really, really helpful.”
Gabriel Martinelli has been one of the most standout players for Arsenal this season. Speaking about his importance for the team, Arteta said, “He’s playing more games, that’s for sure. He’s got another year of experience, he’s got a huge understanding now with his teammates. The way he approaches every single session, the way he approaches his training, his life – he just has to be the best. When that happens, and you have the consistency that he has in how he deals with every situation in every day, only good outcomes are going to be in front of him. I’m not surprised about that, and he has still a lot of things to improve on.”
Arteta then reflected on the 2-2 draw against Liverpool last weekend. He spoke about how upset the players were to concede late at Liverpool. “You should be. When you concede in the last few minutes, you have to be upset. We wanted to win the game but as well, we have to be realistic. We have to accept that we had an exceptional period in the first half where we should have killed the game, but the reality is in the second half we had some really tough moments where we had to dig in. We could have conceded a few goals as well – that was the game,” he explained.
