Mikel Arteta: 'It has been painful, but there are people who will fight alongside me'

ASFN Admin

Administrator
Administrator
Moderator
Supporting Member
Joined
May 8, 2002
Posts
338,572
Reaction score
37
You must be registered for see images attach


Mikel Arteta says Arsenal’s poor run of form has been “draining, frustrating and painful” for him as he shoulders the responsibility of turning around their season while adapting to the demands of his first managerial job. Arteta’s side produced what the Spaniard believes was their best performance of the season in their impressive 3-1 victory over Chelsea on Boxing Day, ending a seven-match winless run in the Premier League. The Arsenal manager said he had been “suffering” from the club’s worst start to a league season in decades but has never doubted that he has the support of those around him at the club. "Obviously results-wise in the last few weeks we have all been suffering,” said Arteta, who takes his side to Brighton on Tuesday. “I have been suffering. I feel very responsible for that. “The worst feeling is because I want to do so well for this football club and at the moment we are in, I want to bring all my passion, the knowledge that I have, the right intentions to move as quickly as we possibly can as a football club. "In order to do that we need to win football matches, to be stable and win some time. When I don't, I feel like I am letting the club down and the people that work for us, and obviously our fans. “It is draining, it is frustrating and it is painful. At the same time I know we have to fight our way back. "In difficult moments is when you see the right people. They give me a lot of encouragement because I see people that are willing to fight with me, with the people that we have here. It gives me energy every day to carry on doing it." Arteta added that his managerial career has so far proven more tiring than his time as a player, saying: “You have a lot of people around you that you have to take care of. I always say you have 70 hearts in the training ground and stadium that you have to look after every day. “Every decision you make has an impact on their lives, their mood and the next day. So you are very aware of that and you get attached emotionally to them and I’m attached emotionally to this football club. “That makes the emotion even bigger and stronger and that will drain you energy wise. Even when you win there are always things going on and I knew when I took charge that it is a tough job, but I have to say I love it. It was my decision to be here and I couldn’t be any prouder.” With youngsters Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli and Emile Smith Rowe leading the way, the performance against Chelsea was perhaps Arsenal’s most fluid showing of the league campaign. Such attacking intent had been largely missing this season, with Arteta not yet able to impose a style similar to what he was used to at Manchester City as Pep Guardiola’s assistant. Arteta said he has been forced to adapt his tactical blueprint far more than he expected when he took over at Arsenal as he has sought a system that suits the qualities, and the limitations, of his players. “I question myself every day,” said the Arsenal manager. “Since I arrived here, first of all I had to analyse really well what was happening, what we can and cannot do. “And I have adapted much more than probably what I thought I would when I took the team. Because there are certain things that are much better for the qualities of the players we have and other things that we are not prepared to do yet. “We have to adapt because at the end of the day we have to make life as simple, as clear and as efficient as possible for our players when they go onto that pitch.” Arteta is likely to be without Brazilian trio David Luiz, Willian and Gabriel Magalhaes for Tuesday’s meeting with Brighton. All three were unavailable for the Chelsea match and Gabriel is set to miss the next “few games” after somebody in his bubble tested positive for coronavirus. Willian and Luiz, meanwhile, have been suffering from symptoms but have not tested positive. They will only come back into the fold once the club is “100 per cent sure” they do not have the virus, Arteta said.

Continue reading...
 

Staff online

Forum statistics

Threads
534,875
Posts
5,247,051
Members
6,274
Latest member
G-PA
Top