Mikel Arteta admits Arsenal were fortunate to escape victory
‘We couldn’t manage the game or the tension’: Mikel Arteta admits Arsenal were fortunate to escape with a north London derby victory over rivals Tottenham as he claims the last 10 minutes were ‘the WORST we played in the game’
- Arsenal beat Tottenham 2-1 in the Premier League on Sunday afternoon
- Goals from Martin Odegaard and Alexandre Lacazette turned the game around
- Tottenham goal scorer Erik Lamela was sent of with 14 minutes remaining
- This somewhat strangely led to the visiting side’s best period of the game
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta admitted Arsenal were reliant on good luck to see out Sunday’s win over over Tottenham at the Emirates Stadium.
The Gunners came out on top in the north London derby, beating their rivals 2-1.
They dominated the majority of the game, goals from Martin Odegaard and Alexandre Lacazette putting them in front after a stunning opener from Erik Lamela.
Mikel Arteta admits Arsenal were reliant on good luck to see out Sunday’s win over over Spurs
Lamela was then sent off with 14 minutes remaining but this strangely led to Spurs’ best period of the game, the visitors piling on the pressure and coming close to equalising on a number of occasions.
‘The last ten minutes was the worst we played in the game, we couldn’t manage the game or the tension,’ Arteta told Sky Sports after the game. We should have done much better and we need to do better at that as a team.’
Of course, Arteta was still pleased with his team’s overall display, especially considering they were in action in Greece on Thursday.
‘Full credit to the players and way we did it today, two and a half days after coming back from Europe,’ he said.
‘The spirit we showed throughout the game was incredible. Going 1-0 down after way we were playing was really disappointing and the worst case scenario playing against a team like Spurs. But we reacted and kept playing and deserved the win.
Both sets of players watch on as Harry Kane hits the post in the closing stages of the game
‘It’s how you react (after Lamela goal) we showed recently that we can react. We needed to keep believing and I think we kept generating chances and a lot of good situations and got rewarded for that.
‘I think we played well the last one (north London derby) but they are so efficient and don’t need many chances to score as you saw today. Lamela scored with pure quality which was incredible. There’s a lot to improve but we are going in the right direction.’
Arteta was also asked about his decision to drop Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang due to ‘disciplinary reasons’, reports claiming the striker arrived late.
‘We have a way of living together, we have to respect each other and that’s it. But he’s an incredible guy and he’s one of the most important players in the team, he’s the captain and these things happen in football. There’s a lot of things happening in our lives, people finding it hard to handle the restrictions and it’s part of our job. I will never tell anything what happens in the dressing room.’
Arteta celebrates with his players following the full-time whistle at the Emirates Stadium
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