Coach Arteta: 'Victory against Aston Villa is Arsenal's message'
"Arsenal like to send a message with victory, and want to continue to do so," Arteta said after the round 7 match on the evening of March 2. "What I like is that the whole team is passionate and we are not going to stop. We got where we are by training, having good players, good combinations. But Arsenal can play better. And make sure to prepare well for the next game against Bournemouth, because it will be a difficult match."
At the Emirates home, Arsenal dominated the game, holding the ball 74%, finishing 15 times with five shots on target, scoring four goals divided equally in two halves. In which Bukayo Saka opened the scoring, Gabriel Martinelli scored twice, and captain Martin Odegaard scored the other.
According to Arteta, Arsenal's victory was not perfect when it was difficult and many times let the opponent exploit space in the first 25 minutes. Therefore, he called the combination of Oleksandr Zinchenko and Saka that created the opener a "miracle moment", making it easier for Arsenal to rest. "When it comes to scoring in the key moments, the whole team is full of confidence and plays as great as in the second half," he added.
Arteta was also pleased when the "Gunners" improved their creativity and finishing to win the last three matches: Everton 4-0, Leicester 1-0 and Aston Villa 4-2. Before that, his team had a bit of a pause when in turn lost to Man City 1-3, drew Brentford 1-1 and lost to Everton 0-1. "I have no doubt that we will turn the situation around and improve. There are small details that make you win or not, and I am really satisfied with the position of the current team," said the coach. 1982 said.
Together to tear the net against Everton, Saka and Martinelli reached 10 goals in the Premier League this season. Arsenal is the only club to have two players reach this milestone in this year's tournament. "They are always willing to learn, asking more and more from themselves every day. With such talent and will, eventually good things will happen," Arteta said.
Victory over Everton helped Arsenal reach 60 points in 25 Premier League matches this season, equaling the record set in 2003-04 and 2007-2008. In which, they won the championship with an unbeaten record in the 2003-2004 season and finished third in the 2007-2008 season. When asked about the secret to helping the students reduce stress, Arteta replied: "You need to get a lot of points to win the championship. We can only focus on what we have to do, and let the rest happen on its own. But because that's something no one can control."
On March 4, the "Gunners" received Bournemouth round 26 and then became a guest of Sporting in the first leg of the 1/8 round of the Europa League on March 9.
