Mikel Arteta says Arsenal must build momentum after picking up their first points of the season last weekend.
The Gunners head to Burnley on Saturday buoyed by the 1-0 win over Norwich City and with a week of preparation under their belts.
With most of his key players fit and an air of optimisim washing over the club following the conclusion of the transfer window, the boss knows there are no excuses when it comes to performances.
“Absolutely, now we have to put a run together,” said Arteta when quizzed about the week ahead which also includes a Carabao Cup clash with AFC Wimbledon and the first north London derby of the season.
“We know how much we need the results and the performances will lead to that. If we do what we have to do against Burnley, we’ll be much closer to achieving that.
“We’ve had a good week to prepare for the game. We know what we are facing. The challenge is going to be big, because it’s one of the toughest places to go in the Premier League. We are ready for it.”
For all their rough and tumble tactics – something that irked Jurgen Klopp and Rafa Benitez in recent weeks – Sean Dyche’s team remain winless. All the same, having taken four points off us last season, Arteta knows his players can’t rest on their laurels.
“Obviously they had some difficulties to get results, during games that I watched, they have been pretty unlucky in certain moments because they have moments of real dominance and they end up losing matches. We know how tough it is to go to Burnley, we know the game we can expect there and we will be prepared for that.
He added: “Obviously it is going to be a completely different game that when we played against Norwich because of their qualities and the game they propose, where they want to take the game to and we will have to avoid it as much as possible and do the opposite thing.”
For the first time since the season began, Arteta looked relatively relaxed when he faced the media. After a horrifically stressful opening month, he noted: “I can really see the light. I’m telling you I’m very positive most of the time. I’ve seen the light and I can see bright lights. There can be bumps in the road within that light, but I can see a lot of light.”
The mood is currently optimistic and I really hope it stays that way. Dropping points at Burnley will be the mood ruining equivalent of being shat on by a seagull
Arteta just won one match with a one goal margin and he’s now talking tough 😀
Isn’t that what happened to Ashley Young:-)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LoZXEbo96Lg
Let’s hope the light stays on…
Illuminating article. Good to see he’s worked out watt to do to get the team switched on.
Ohh I miss the days when games like this were an automatic 3 points !!!
Not sure I remember those days. Even though we’ve picked up more points against sides like Burnley than ppl would like to give us credit for, the old “can they do it on a cold rainy night in Stoke” cliche has been knocking about for a while now and there has been some truth to it.
Would love nothing more than to play them off the park but I’m always a bit nervous facing sides with Burnley’s reputation
Beast, come on. This is just broadening the safety net of failure for Arteta. As George below pointed out, the club, pre-Arteta had a near perfect record against Burnley for ten years.
So not only are we making excuses for Mikel, we are now getting into the habit of exaggerating the qualities of every opponent. Burnley are a high-pressing team but they do not commit all outfield players to an offensive press. They generally leave all defenders in a low block, which leaves massive gaps behind the midfield.
Any decent ball-playing or counter-attacking team can exploit this easily.
And as goonshow pointed out “You must be too young to remember Bolton…” The reputation we have against physical, foul happy sides goes back long before Arteta even played for the club. It’s definitely nothing new, so I’m not gonna use it as a stick to beat Arteta with or declare that Arteta’s managed to put that cliche to bed if we win. Our record against Burnley is good, home & away, and long may it continue. But let’s not pretend that we’ve never struggled against teams in there mould and that sayings like “Arsenal don’t like it up ’em”… Read more »
I’m well aware Arsenal have historically had difficulties with physical teams. Especially given the long term injuries to Diaby, Eduardo, Ramsey against rough and tumble teams. However, even with overly physical teams, Wenger got results against them most of the time. Wenger’s record against: Bolton – 17W 9D 5L Sunderland – 20W 10D 5L Birmingham City – 10W, 4D 2L Watford – 9W 0D 3L Stoke City – 13W 3D 6L Leeds United – 12W 4D 5L Wigan Athletic – 16W 2D 3L Crystal Palace – 11W 4D 1L All rough and tumble teams against whom we came out with… Read more »
Mate, your beef is obviously with Arteta, not my original post.
All I know is that I’ve never felt as though matches against the Stokes, Boltons & Burnleys of world were ever automatic 3 pointers. And that goes back to since I started supporting the club, even before Arteta was a twinkle in David Moyes’ wrinkly eye.
At home, matches like these were a given. But away? We normally struggled. Players like Ozil and Bellerin couldn’t be bothered.
No. Until February 2020, when we drew there, we had won every match against Burnley, home and away, since we drew in 2009.
Nice story. Until February 2020, when we drew there, we had won every league match against Burnley, home and away, since a draw in 2009.
You must be too young to remember Bolton… ugh!
Ah, yes. Eleven thugs and a walrus. Simple, ugly and yet effective.
Hahahahaha
I wish, remember them well Big Sam smirking in the dugout! I wasn’t really referring to Burnley my point was back in the 90’s any game against teams in the bottom half usually resulted in 3 points.
Anyone else immediately think of this? 🙂
https://youtu.be/PZpH9Khn0E0?t=76
Jesus H tap dancing Christ!
Excellent work sir
😎😎
What light?
Yes, me…!! 😂
Not for me. This came to mind instead
https://youtu.be/TTUQyEr-sg0
For me it was:
https://youtu.be/i4G-hjfMR4U
Blinded by the lights
Hmmm, surely there are tougher places to go??! That said, this is a great chance to gain said momentum. With all the choices does anyone/everyone think he’ll stick with the same starting 11 as Norwich?
Hopefully we’ll see Partey from start in place of AMN. Otherwise I’d go with the same 11.
I’d potentially like to see laca start over auba.
the Walcott analogy of fresh fast legs vs tired defenders, plus I think laca links up with the closer intricate passing game of odegaard, smith Rowe and saka, and is also a bit more physical.
Well, just the small fact that goals win you games and Laca is never in the box.
I’m glad someone can
Who knows, maybe he’s referring to the lighting set-up used by the All or Nothing camera crew. Perhaps he wants them to turn it off?🤔
Minimum 4 victories in next 5 matches is what my prediction is. Also, Partey will score his first goal for us.
Bare minimum is it?
Prediction or Hallucination?🤔
Sometimes his tactics make it seem like he can see sounds and hear colours.
Synesthesia?
Some people can.
Wow, thanks for sharing this.
I’ve been reliably told Kanye West can see colors.
And do you know where else you can see colors?
In The Athletic.
Hallelujah.
How Arsenal would it be to lose to Burnley and then go a goal down to Tottenham, only to beat them convincingly
That’s what the deer on the highway said.
(Just kidding actually, but I had to.)
1000 internets to you for this one!!!
No! Don’t enter the light Mikel!
https://youtu.be/hiMN760vFUs
We all know what happens when rabbits & deer see bright lights, so for once I hope he can walk his talk.
> 99.99% manage to avoid incident.
This man is ALL TALK!! let’s see if you still see the light in 3 weeks. The players need to step up…no more fking excuses….covid has affected everyone and all teams have to deal with injuries. We just need every player to give 100% when they play.
Hopefully fir his sake, the light is not an incoming freight train
The pessimist sees no light in the tunnel. The optimist sees the light at the end of the tunnel. The realist sees that the light is a train. The train driver sees only three fools on the track.
Maybe it’s just me but often it feels like these confident statements, bu the manager or players, tend to be followed by inevitable defeats. They’re up there with the often used post match ‘we need to learn from our mistakes’ line. Though that may be reducing in the post Mustafi Luiz era.
And if a double-decker bus
Is parked in front of us,
To upset Sean Dyche
I’d pick Ainsley Maitland-Niles.
And If Au-bame-yang
Thrills the lot of us,
And scores for our side–
Well, Mikel, the privilege is mine.
There is a light and it never goes out,
There is a light and it never goes out,
There is a light and it never goes out,
There is a light and it never goes out…
Love how you layed out the three syllables of Aubameyang, gold!
Talk to me once the team puts together three performances as good as the first three were shit.
You’ll probably find many of us have better things to do.
You don’t seem to.
thanks for my morning chuckles mate.
The man has said he has seen the light.. Nobody asked him in what direction
Just gimme the light and pass the dro….
Go into the light.
This is getting embarrassing now. Every attempt he makes to sound intellectual ends up as meme material. I think someone (Guardiola) has blown smoke up this guy’s arse so much he really has fallen for his own hype. Remember Wenger? People actually listened when he spoke because he was a genuinely engaging and enlightening guy. Arteta? Tries so hard to be some philosophical guy, but the reality is he displays all the trademark tendancies of a narcissist. And the best part? He has us held hostage. Has the club exactly where he wants us. Mediocre and grateful beyond belief for… Read more »
Fully agree, moreover I have read numerous comments in the past few days stating that poor results and difficult times were expected, yes I do agree that managerial changes require a period of adaption, but Arteta has wasted an entire season and knowing how ruthless PL is nowadays odds are that this season will be a complete failure as well after such an abysmal start. It is sad that we are getting used to poor football, and overall mediocrity.
100% Yourself and Disarmed Gooners are spot on. It just feels like most of the fanbase are still trying to convince themselves that our circumstances aren’t worse than Emery’s last days here. More players wanted to leave this past transfer window than Unai’s last window and our underlying performance metrics are even worse but “it’s not as bad”. In the entire history of the EPL, the highest, a team with negative goal difference and less than 4 points by Matchday 4 finished was… 7th. Aston Villa in 1997/98. They rectified their season with a managerial change. Most of the other… Read more »
I think we’ve all lit a few candles for this team recently 🙏
Lol after a 1-0 victory against Norwich..
Just let that sink in…
I hope that the light he is seeing is in shape of letters ” EXIT” at the top of a door.
The sun shines out of your behind doesn’t it, Mikel?
I can see clearly now, the rain has gone
I can see all obstacles in my way
Gone are the dark clouds that had me blind
It’s gonna be a bright, bright sun-shining day
It’s gonna be a bright, bright sun-shining day
Tell me how bright the light is facing the top 6 sides. Top 10? It’s much easier when it’s Norwich or Burnley.