We both know that it's going to be a tough game: Arteta on Leicester

Arsenal will be looking to maintain their recent positive form when they travel to Leicester City at the weekend. The Gunners kick start the proceedings on Saturday, playing the Foxes in the early kick-off. It will be a difficult assignment for Mikel Arteta’s boys who seem to have overcome a difficult start to the season with good results in the recent weeks. However, the task at hand on Saturday will not be easy for Arsenal. In a virtual press conference, Arteta, according to the club’s website, provided an update on team news, “There have been a few of them that haven’t been able to train. We picked up some knocks during the game against Leeds, but hopefully, when everybody is back, we will have better news.”

Speaking about Kieran Tierney, he said, “He’s progressing in training. Let’s see again how he is today. He felt a little bit better in the last few days but he wasn’t 100 per cent ready to start the game, but again, we will see what happens in the last 40 hours.” Arteta then praised the other left-back in the team – Nuno Tavares. “He had an impressive performance. To have your first Premier League debut and to play the way he did with that intensity as well that he is not used to. Credit to the boy. I really like what he did, he’s still really young, he’s improving, he’s settled really well and he had a really good performance,” he added.

Arteta felt that both teams will fight for the three points on Saturday. “Both teams for sure are going to play to win the game. We both know that it’s going to be a tough game. We have some experience against them as well and we’ll just prepare for the game in the best possible way.”

‘Brendan has done a tremendous job over there’

Asked about Arsenal’s good recent record over Leicester, the manager replied, “I don’t know. Their team has changed. They can play in different formations. There are some principles that they respect really well. I think Brendan has done a tremendous job over there and we’re going to face a team again that can have different faces because of the way they play and it will be difficult,” he added.

The Spanish manager was also asked whether the midweek matches will affect the weekend. “We both had to play 90 minutes, except for the penalties. We had a really tough game against the most intense Premier League team in Leeds and now we feel recovered and ready for the next one,” he explained.

Arteta then spoke about the situation at Barcelona, saying, “Yeah, there’s been a lot going on in the last few years. Obviously, how Covid has affected the way that you have to overcome a situation like the departure of Messi, who has been the key player for many many years and all that takes time. We will see. I just hope that everything works out well.”

In Premier League, there have been speculations about the future of Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solsjaer and Tottenham Hotspur manager Nuno Espirito Santo. Asked about it, Arteta said, “It’s always about the results, and we all know that and the rest it doesn’t really matter. So when you are having difficulties getting results, then you’re going to be in that position. There’s nothing new for anybody. But yes, obviously you feel (for them) because you know what you have to go through. So you feel that obviously it’s not a nice moment for those that are going through that.”