In the second half of his pre-Ipswich press conference (recorded on Monday), Mikel Arteta answered more questions on Bukayo Saka’s recovery from injury and how the club will adapt to his absence. He also touched on Gabriel Martinelli, youngsters Lewis-Skelly and Nwaneri and what Arsenal might do when the transfer window opens next week.
On what Arsenal can do to stop a recurrence of Saka’s hamstring injury…
At the moment, we’re just worrying about resolving the first one and go day-by-day. Obviously, when you look at his history over six years, it’s incredible. It’s very difficult to find a more robust player in this league, especially at his age when the load goes like a spike, national team, club, everything. It’s an injury, we have to go over it and he will be fine.
On whether his workload contributed to the injury…
I think there will be a lot of factors that are contributing to an injury like this. We are looking at it and trying to [see if we could] do it better but nobody knows. Maybe you think you’re doing everything perfect and perfect is not what that muscle needs, it needs something else that we cannot control.
On whether he’d be willing to change Arsenal’s shape completely to cope without Saka…
We are looking at every option that we can do, especially as we lost two [players]. We are going to be different, trying to be the same but worse, I don’t want. Somebody trying to do [an impression] of Bukayo [I don’t want], that player has to be himself and for the team to be himself. That’s the direction.
On Myles Lewis-Skelly starting ahead of Riccardo Calafiori against Palace…
He played because in my opinion, he deserved to play. He’s fit, he played the previous game, he did really well. He trained every day with us. Riccardo was coming back from an injury and trained one day. It’s a way of showing trust in him to continue to do what he’s doing. Ricky now has to earn his place in the team. He played, he played some very good minutes as well when he came on. He had one training session and now everybody’s in contention. With the games that we have, for sure everybody’s going to play.
On there being accusations he’s not played young players enough in the past…
Accusation? What a word that is! If we believe that they have the capacity first to handle this level, the emotional part of that, the physical part of that, and they fit within the team and they can get the team better, they are more than welcome.
On Ethan Nwaneri being someone who has the capacity to fill in, like Lewis-Skelly…
Yes. He needs to understand a few things. Obviously for Ethan, it’s a massive step in the last 12 months. But he’s on the journey with us and every time he plays, you don’t notice anything. I think he changed games for the better, so that’s a really good sign.
On Ian Wright sending a message of support to Gabriel Martinelli…
I promote that 100 per cent. Learning from people with the experience and who’ve been so successful, that know the football club and have a genuine, positive interest to help. Everybody is more than welcome.
On learning from Arsenal’s poor run this time last year…
Yeah, well, it was very different. The first one was in Anfield, we were winning 2-0 and draw 2-2. Very different game against West Ham, where they had the most touches in the position, both in the history of the Premier League. Lose 0-2, go home, you cannot believe it, but it’s the reality. Then Fulham was something very different. A lot to learn from each game, like always.
On what he learned from that…
That at the end, the ball has to be in the net. It’s really good, but go back, like the English, you love this, go back to basics. Yeah? Basics, so let’s go back to basics.
On Saka having a history of returning from injury quickly…
Yes, but the sample in this case is very small because he had very little issues. Looking at him, the way he recovers from game to game, we can be hopeful that we can make that period shorter, but how short [remains to be seen], it’s a significant injury, so we have to be very careful that when he comes back, he’s in the right way and with the right form, and then we’re going to have to manage him because he’s going to be out for a long period.
On how realistic it is that players he wants will be available in January…
My focus now, honestly, is just about with the squad that we have to be as competitive as we possibly can and we have many, many options to do that, and if something unbelievable is available and the club is willing to do it, we’ll have to consider it.
On Saka’s injury being an opportunity for Martinelli…
Yes, I think it’s, again, something collective. He certainly did that because he had a big impact in the game [against Palace] and like other players, everyone’s going to have to add something else because Bukayo, who we rely a lot on, is not going to be with us.
On whether Martinelli has it within him to raise his level…
I think so. Gabi loves it. Gabi, you put him a challenge and he wants to do it today if he can. So, I think he’s a player that likes responsibility, that likes a bigger role. So, again, it’s for all of them up front to take responsibility now.
Liverpool are looking some way ahead but let’s get into second and start to put some pressure on them.
Salah looks some way ahead, he’s the difference. We don’t have a player near that quality
Not sure why that’s getting down votes. Salah is a monster at the moment and clearly the top performer in the league on current form.
Because apparently we have someone who’s scored 16 league goals that were missing
Chelski had Salah- sold him
Roma had Salah- sold him
So maybe we have someone just as special on the payroll that will take us be surprise. Maybe Gabi, maybe Nethan, who knows? When Liverpool signed him, they probably never expected the second half of his career to shape out the way it did.
Not pretending he is potentially too much to contend with this season mind
Maybe I’m just being naive but I feel that if you put Saka in that Liverpool team, with TAA behind him instead of Partey, he could get close to Salah’s numbers. In fact, he was very close last season, 16 goals and 9 assists to Salah’s 18 and 10 respectively. With that being said, I think there’s more we can do tactically to get the most out of Saka in attack before going into the transfer window.
All we can do is win our games. Most of our away matches in the second half of the season are against teams in the bottom half of the table. The schedule should be easier than it was in the first half of the campaign. But we have to be ruthless and beat beatable teams.
Liverpool are exactly how we have been the last two seasons. I honestky not worried. I think we are adjusting and managing our levels of playing. Dare I say watch as from now on.
CL and the Cups should now be set as objectives not the usual let’s try to perform as good as we can and see what happens.
I tend to agree with it. Even if it’s good to see the general optimism here, I think there were 2 or 3 very unfortunate things this year that went against us. The 1st was our lot of injuries at the back. The 2nd. was our 2 months without Odegaard AND our overreliance on him as far as the creativity part concern in attack. And I think the 3rd. was Arne Slot’s wisdom when he built on Klopp’s heritage and relied on the whole squad and rotated his players continously. But even with all of this – I don’t think… Read more »
Huge credit to Liverpool but for 45 mins last night they were low blocked by a low block. Leicester kept central and deep and liverpool couldn’t get thru. Everton will do same and more teams as they fight for their lives , the aren’t unbeatable and will start to drop points and they are conceding a few softer goals so ya they can be caught if we just do our stuff
Also, I saw some scouse cunt online celebrating that they’d won the league when the Saka injury news broke.
We owe it ourselves to make that git and those like him very unhappy.
I’ll state here and now that if we play Martinelli on the right he’ll score more goals than Saka did
That’s a big statement, I hope you’re proved correct.
As for Liverpool well they’ve not had a blip yet, let’s see how they cope with a couple of draws close together and Arsenal closing the gap. Maybe, hopefully, we can do to them what City did to us?
Not really, they’ve scored the same number of goals only Martinelli has done it with 18 shots and Saka with 44 and having spent about 300 minutes less on the pitch.
That’s impressive…
And without three men on him every game…cmon mate Saka is our best player and, imo, makes the team tick. With all the attention he takes from opponents you could argue martinelli should have done much better….
You’re wrong, yes he’s a good player but wildly over praised. He gets no more attention then any other decent player
3 points essential today. I still don’t feel as though Liverpool have shown that they are actually ‘better’ than we are in their performances but you can’t argue with the relentlessness of their results. But if we can get above Chelsea and establish ourselves as their main rivals then that’s a good start. I reckon a run like the second half of last season would see is champions.
Wild thought… Saka started as a LB. Wonder if Mikel might try MLS on the RW. He can dribble, pass , hold the ball and a nice left foot. May not be as quick tho. I know Ethan is a more obvious option. But we have no deputy for Odegaard except Ethan but a few deputies for LB aside MLS
A solid January loan signing to help up front would be the most sensible option. I really can’t see us spending big January.
Kolo Muani brings a kai effect, unorthodoxed disruptive no 9, whilst also ability to play on either wing. He would be hell of a signing . Direct pace and power not the very most skillfull but neither were Freddie or Wiltord
Cheeky Dani Olmo bid?
It is a two horse race. Chelsea have shown they are not yet consistent enough, and Man City – incredibly – would still only get to 88 points if they won every remaining game, which they will not do anyway. Arsenal’s maximum is 96 points, and you have to feel Liverpool will get no less than 84-86 points, so need to avoid more than two draws and two defeats the rest of the way for 86 points (and even that might not be enough) and also at the very least avoid defeat at Anfield. Still in it, but it is… Read more »