Dream display leaves Mikel Arteta purring

30.11.2023 - 11:53 rte.ie

Mikel Arteta admitted it was a "genuine dream" watching Arsenal's dominant 6-0 victory over Lens at the Emirates Stadium which saw them qualify for the Champions League last 16.The Gunners topped Group B with a game to spare after they battered their French opponents with six different goalscorers.Kai Havertz, Gabriel Jesus, Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli and Martin Odegaard struck in the first half before Jorginho added their sixth from the penalty spot late on.Arsenal boss Arteta talked up his team’s determination which secured the club’s 100th Champions League victory."It was a genuine dream," Arteta said."We had a chance to qualify today and we’ve done it in a really convincing way against a really good side.

The team from the beginning showed a lot of aggression and determination to go for the game."It’s great we’re able to win in this way and we showed at home not to concede any goals and score a lot which is a positive factor.

The players need to believe we can do that against big opponents."The Spaniard noted that qualification with a game to spare allows him to rotate in Arsenal’s final group fixture against PSV Eindhoven on 12 December.Arteta added: "Every time we play a football match we’ll prepare in the best way but it will give us some room now certainly in relation to the state of the squad by being able to use certain players more or less."Havertz scored his second in as many games after the German netted a dramatic late winner in Saturday’s 1-0 Premier League victory at Brentford.The attacker’s influence in recent games has impressed Arteta after a difficult start to life in north London since his reported £65m move from Chelsea in the summer."Kai again scored two goals in two games and that’s really

Arsenal Champions League soccer Sport Mikel Mikel Arteta Martin Odegaard Gabriel Jesus Kai Havertz Gabriel Martinelli France Germany

Arsenal’s German midfielder #29 Kai Havertz (C) is mobbed by teammates Arsenal’s Belgian midfielder #19 Leandro Trossard (L), Arsenal’s English midfielder #41 Declan Rice (2L) and Arsenal’s English striker #14 Eddie Nketiah after scoring the team’s second goal during the English Premier League football match between Arsenal and Brighton and Hove Albion at the Emirates Stadium in London on December 17, 2023. (Photo by JUSTIN TALLIS / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE. NO USE WITH UNAUTHORIZED AUDIO, VIDEO, DATA, FIXTURE LISTS, CLUB/LEAGUE LOGOS OR ‘LIVE’ SERVICES. ONLINE IN-MATCH USE LIMITED TO 120 IMAGES. AN ADDITIONAL 40 IMAGES MAY BE USED IN EXTRA TIME. NO VIDEO EMULATION. SOCIAL MEDIA IN-MATCH USE LIMITED TO 120 IMAGES. AN ADDITIONAL 40 IMAGES MAY BE USED IN EXTRA TIME. NO USE IN BETTING PUBLICATIONS, GAMES OR SINGLE CLUB/LEAGUE/PLAYER PUBLICATIONS. – RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or ‘live’ services. Online in-match use limited to 120 images. An additional 40 images may be used in extra time. No video emulation. Social media in-match use limited to 120 images. An additional 40 images may be used in extra time. No use in betting publications, games or single club/league/player publications. /

Mikel Arteta praises 'incredible' Arsenal after victory over Brighton in Premier League

Arsenal finally wore down Brighton's resistance to secure a 2-0 Premier League victory at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday.

Arteta hails 'incredible' Arsenal performance in win over Brighton

LONDON : Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta hailed an "incredible performance" from his squad as they dismantled Brighton & Hove Albion 2-0 at home on Sunday to provisionally return to the summit of the Premier League table.

Mikel Arteta stays tight-lipped on VAR after disallowed equaliser

Mikel Arteta was seemingly aiming to sidestep another Football Association charge as the Arsenal boss refused to be drawn on two contentious calls in their Premier League defeat at Aston Villa.

Arsenal moves 5 points clear in Premier League after last-gasp win but Raya’s form remains a concern

As soon as the ball hit the back of the net, Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya sprinted the length of the field to celebrate the last-gasp winner with his jubilant teammates. No player will have been more relieved than Raya to see Declan Rice’s glancing header creep into the corner and seal a chaotic 4-3 victory over Luton in the Premier League on Tuesday. While Rice is proving value for money after his club-record signing in July, Raya — another offseason recruit — remains an issue for Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta as the team bids to win the league title after last season’s near miss. Arsenal moved five points clear with its fourth straight victory in the league, overcoming errors from Raya that led to two goals for Luton by netting in the seventh minute of stoppage time through Rice at Kenilworth Road. “The spirit of the team — how we fought, showed our quality in the right moments and never gave up,” Arteta said. “We went for it and got our rewards.” Arteta chose not to talk about the mistakes by Raya, which looked like they’d be costly for Arsenal. The team was leading 2-1 in the 49th minute when the Spanish goalkeeper was beaten in the air at a corner by Elijah Adebayo, who powered in a header for an equalizer. Eight minutes later, Raya allowed a shot by Ross Barkley to go under his body as he dived to his left. Luton, a promoted team likely to be battling relegation this season, was suddenly 3-2 ahead and Raya didn’t know where to look. Kai Havertz scored an equalizer almost immediately, though, and incessant pressure in the final minutes ended with Martin Odegaard whipping in a cross and Rice rising to flick a header into the bottom corner, sparking wild celebrations in the away end and jeers from Luton fans.