Arteta on the Odegaard-Saka relationship, old school rivalries and Arsenal’s form

In the second half of his pre-Manchester United press conference, Mikel Arteta faced more questions about Bukayo Saka’s development, Martin Odegaard’s form, Arsenal’s recent form and the long-standing rivalry between his side and the Red Devils.

Here’s what the boss had to say…

On whether he envisioned Saka eventually playing on the right wing after his first match in charge…

That day, no. I think day by day, the moment that I started to understand and see the skill set and the relationship that he could generate in the team, I was convinced that long-term, medium-term, that [left-back] wasn’t position and the team needed another kind of threat, creativity, and that he could provide those moments. And slowly we were moving him, first to the left, then to the right, and then we started to see naturally that it was the position that he was feeling more comfortable in, and we were consistent there.

On how Saka has changed as a person in the time they’ve worked together…

Well, you can tell by the way he presents himself, the way he talks, the decisions that he makes, that he’s got a massive role in the team. He’s the main figure with two or three players at the club, and he plays for the national team. He’s a very established player right now, and he’s deciding football matches for us. So he has the right to act and be that way, but at the same time, he’s still so humble, close, and charming to everybody.

On Arsenal’s rivalry with Manchester United and whether he’d like to see it reach the heights of the nineties and noughties…

They were competing and they were the main two teams, so obviously when you are fighting to get the cup at the end, yeah, the tension raises. I think certain individuals as well made it very, very special. And you cannot force that. We are trying to get there. And they, I’m sure they’re going to be trying to get there, and let’s see what happens in the future.

On it being harder to generate specific rivalries because the league as a whole is more competitive…

That league and this league, there’s no comparison in the amount of teams that they had the capacity to win it and challenge for it. It wasn’t that open, for sure.

On whether today’s game could benefit from more bust-ups, both on and off the field, like in the old days…

I don’t know. I saw a lot of respect as well there. I was lucky to have Arsene [Wenger] here, and the way he was talking always about Sir Alex [Ferguson] and his teams and the way he conducted himself, it was top. And that was a lesson as well, because you really want to win. But as well, you have to accept that the opponent can be better, or you can be better than the opponent, and you have to continuously move on.

On Saka and Odegaard’s chemistry and whether he’s seen other players with such a good understanding…

Yeah, they are [great partners] and can be, obviously, in this case, because they are an attacking midfielder and a winger. I’ve seen centre-backs, I’ve seen midfielders between them having it. I just think about Barcelona, with Xavi, Busquets and Iniesta. It was something else, they didn’t even need to look at themselves. But our two centre-backs [Gabriel Magalhaes and William Saliba] as well, naturally, it’s a chemistry there that is unbelievable. So try to develop those more and more, because there is something there that is very difficult to put a number to it, but it flows in a natural way. And the more relationships like this you have in the team, the better.

On Odegaard’s importance to the squad in the quest to chase down Liverpool…

Obviously, he brings an energy and a stamina, a quality that is very difficult to see. And when I talk about that trust, it’s because he earns it every single day, the way he conducts himself, the way he talks to people and the way he’s constantly pushing each other to get the standards as high as possible. And that’s something that he hasn’t done overnight. So credit to him because he has earned it.

On who else in the squad has that quality…

There are many others in different ways as well. Martin has his own way of doing Bukayo, Jorginho has his own way, Thomas has his own way, Gabi, Saliba, David. You know, there is a lot.

On whether he’s noticed anything different in his team in the last two weeks…

Well, first of all, the efficiency in the last 20 metres, for sure. And then the fact that winning and scoring a goal, being in front and scoring two or three, obviously changes the dynamic of the game instead of going behind or feeling a little bit more restricted in certain ways after not winning a football match or two.

On whether his team need to go to another level…

Yeah, well, the level is to win, win, win, win, win and win, that’s it. So, we haven’t done that this season yet. We have won a lot of games, not at the level of Liverpool, so there is another level, for sure.

On Gabriel Magalhaes acting like an NFL quarterback in the way he called the shots before his headed goal at West Ham…

In relation to the phase of play that we have, obviously, there are certain players that are accountable to pass information, to read clues, and to understand what we have to do and then communicate.

On whether Big Gabi is solely charged with that responsibility…

Not only him, there are a few, yeah.

On what Ruben Amorim has to do at Manchester United to rebuild a squad in his image…

I think what he [himself] mentioned, have a very strong belief that he’s the right man, first of all, to do it and then be very consistent in your thoughts and put it into practice and make sure that everybody follows you.

On Odegaard’s return to the pitch helping Saka because he provides problems of his own to defenders…

Everything has a knock-on effect and obviously the opponent as well. I’m sure they plan how to stop certain qualities or certain threats that we have and our job is to try to find other mechanisms to continue to be a threat in those spaces or in other spaces.