Arsenal ran out of steam last season – but this is a very different Mikel Arteta team
As long as 30 minutes after the game, and at least 30m from the Arsenal dressing room, you could still hear the raucous celebrations inside. The cheers were especially audible as the door to the media room swung open and Mikel Arteta came in for his press conference, when he eventually allowed himself to smile – and quite widely. “A great feeling,” the Arsenal manager said after his side’s 1-0 win over Manchester City, which represented his first points against his former employers, not to mention his club’s first points at all against the champions since April 2017. “You could sense, it’s been so many years without beating them. “They were all dancing and super happy. They go into the international break and the mood is much better. They’re gonna have a few days off, the ones who are not involved, and it just sends everybody away until the next game against Chelsea with the right feeling. It’s great so I’m really happy.” If these sound like the sort of scenes usually reserved for when a trophy is won, that is kind of the point. It’s all about taking this team closer to that first Premier League since 2004. Arteta has taken them step by step over the last four years, and we’re now at the point where it’s truly decisive moves rather than the earlier strides. It was why this was so important. If you are going to actually beat a team as powerful as this Manchester City in the title race, you obviously need to beat them on the pitch, and in the league. Arteta naturally tried to play down its exact psychological significance, but he couldn’t but admit this was important. His interpretations of previous games were maybe a bit generous but that was understandable. “I don’t know if it was a barrier. Obviously it was something we needed to go through. To beat them we have to lose against them, we have to lose probably the way we lost at the Etihad. The team showed a real maturity today, that comes from experiences. Sometimes you need that to become a better team.” That is probably what Arsenal are, even if their points return is worse than this point last season. They are clearly a more substantial team, with more conviction, as a season like last year will ensure. It was an arrival, even if it ended in frustrating fashion. It ultimately proved Arsenal are at that level again. The summer signings have since been about giving them more dimensions. It is one of the more interesting elements of Arsenal’s start to the campaign, as well as what might have been lift-off for Kai Havertz. Arsenal clearly hit on a superb first XI last season, which propelled their campaign for months. The issue was it eventually left Arteta in a bind. He could either persevere with the XI, at the cost of energy given how little they were rested, or he could change up but also remove some of the verve. He tried to do a bit of both in the end, and they somewhat inevitably ran out of steam. Since then, Arteta has obviously been trying to give them more depth, but also variety. Havertz was about exactly this. Arteta will especially enjoy his contribution, the pass to Gabriel Martinelli for the goal coming as it did just minutes after the German came on. It looked simple but was about his spatial awareness and presence of mind. The effect of just doing that can’t be discounted either – as with the win. Arsenal will believe, even more than before. Nobody should believe this is going to be the City for the rest of the season of course. They have some huge absences, especially with Rodri and Kevin De Bruyne. They will return and both the team and Erling Haaland will inevitably go on the sort of run they did last season at least once. Arsenal should be more equipped to go that bit further, to get more points. That was what the celebrations felt like they were about, at least in part. The team is that bit closer to completion. Read More Mikel Arteta hails ‘fantastic’ young Arsenal side as they break Man City hex Arteta provides Saka injury update and rules Arsenal star out for England Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta hails ‘maturity’ of young Gunners after City win Gabriel Martinelli snatches last-gasp victory for Arsenal against Man City Fortune favours Arsenal as Mikel Arteta finally outdoes Pep Guardiola Pep Guardiola says he learned ‘a lot’ from Mikel Arteta ahead of Sunday reunion
2023-10-10 00:28
US consumer confidence tumbles in September as American anxiety about the future grows
The American consumer is feeling less confident this month, particularly about the future, as expectations persist that interest rates will remain elevated for an extended period
2023-09-26 22:29
Tornado touches down near Chicago's O'Hare airport amid severe weather warnings
The National Weather Service says a tornado has touched down near Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport following warnings of severe weather for the city
2023-07-13 08:21
‘Once hot, always hot’: Sofia Vergara flaunts ‘ageless’ beauty in unedited new photo with friends
Sofia took to her Instagram on Saturday, May 27, to post a series of new stunning pictures after spending quality time with her school friends
2023-05-30 22:20
US Treasury launches US-China economic, financial working groups
By David Lawder WASHINGTON The U.S. Treasury Department on Friday said it was formally launching two new U.S.-China
2023-09-22 21:28
The Pentagon is pulling 1,100 troops from the US-Mexico border mission
The Pentagon is pulling 1,100 troops from the U.S.-Mexico border that it had deployed in response to a surge in migrant crossings
2023-08-02 03:22
Exclusive-China bars brokerages from accepting new mainland clients for offshore trading, say sources
By Selena Li and Summer Zhen HONG KONG China has for the first time issued a notice prohibiting
2023-10-12 12:49
Israel accuses UN chief of justifying terrorism for saying Hamas attack 'didn't happen in a vacuum'
Israeli officials are outraged over U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ comment that the deadly Hamas attack on southern Israel “did not happen in a vacuum,” calling it justification for terrorism
2023-10-26 00:49
Who is Nicole Boyd? 'Jackass' star Bam Margera threatens to 'smoke crack' until estranged wife lets him meet their son
Bam Margera, has threatened to 'smoke crack' until he dies if he's not allowed to see his son, Pheonix, amid an ongoing divorce row
2023-06-02 17:23
Duke Energy to sell distributed generation portfolio in $364 million deal
Utility firm Duke Energy said on Wednesday it would sell its commercial distributed generation business to private equity
2023-07-05 20:51
Bijan Robinson hypes up Falcons' defense with chip on their shoulder
If Bijan Robinson and the Atlanta Falcons get some lift from their defense, this up-and-coming team could really take flight this fall.While there are plenty of positive things to say about Bijan Robinson and the Atlanta Falcons' ground-centric offense, the defense could be sneaky-good this...
2023-07-16 05:23
Drones attack Black Sea, Crimea and parts of Russia where thousands suffered power cuts
Several parts of Russia, the Black Sea and the Crimean peninsula came under drone attacks from Ukraine in the early hours on Monday, officials said as the strikes disturbed air traffic operations over Moscow’s two major airports. The Russian air defence systems destroyed four Ukraine-launched drones over the northwestern part of the Black Sea and over the Crimean peninsula, its defence ministry said on Monday. Another four drones were destroyed over Russia’s bordering cities Kursk and Belgorod, the ministry said in a separate post. The officials did not immediately mention any damage or injuries as a result of the reported attacks. Russia’s Tula region also came under drone attack in the early hours of Monday as the country engaged its air defence systems to repel strikes, officials said. The air defence was activated over the region bordering Moscow to its north, reported Russian news agency RIA. According to preliminary information, no damage or injuries were reported as a result of the attack, the Russian ministry of regional security said. The latest morning attacks caused limitation of air traffic as two of Moscow’s major airports – the Vnukovo and Domedovo – trimmed down operations on Monday. Flights flying into these airports were redirected to other airports, the Tass state news agency reported. A Russian city located right after like Bryansk and Kursk, cities that border Ukraine, Tula has witnessed increasing attacks and power outages recently. In late August, the Russian defence ministry claimed its air defences destroyed two drones over the city, but did not provide further details on the damage and casualties from the interception, if any. It also did not share any precise time and location of the attack. Last week, a loud explosion rocked the Russian city and was followed by a major power outage affecting thousands of people in a district. Local residents reported hearing sounds of an explosion in the vicinity right before the lights went out in Zarechensky district. Around 5,000 residents in the district suffered power outages, RIA reported. However, a Russian official said the two incidents of explosion and power outages were not related. The power blackout was caused by technical failure and not related to any sounds of an explosion, the Russian emergency situations ministry had claimed on Thursday. It also rejected the noise heard by residents to be of explosions and speculated it was caused by an aircraft’s transition to “supersonic speed”. The ministry said work to restore power supply to the Zarechensky “will be completed in the near future”. Read More Ukraine-Russia war – live: Drone attack south of Moscow after two killed in Kherson shelling Russia ‘weaponised food and deliberately caused starvation’ in Ukraine Rishi Sunak poised to delay northern phase of troubled HS2 rail link by up to 7 years India had been riding a geopolitical high. But it comes to the UN with a mess on its hands A Kremlin critic was transferred to a Siberian prison and placed in a 'punishment cell,' lawyer says
2023-09-25 15:58
You Might Like...
Mikel Arteta provides update on Gabriel Martinelli injury
Wall St set to open higher on tentative debt ceiling deal; Nvidia jumps
AI has now animated the famous 'distracted boyfriend' meme to show what happens next
'I'm not interested!' Tim Burton rules out Nightmare Before Christmas sequels or reboots
Exclusive-Deputy Treasury chief Adeyemo says US well-prepared to weather China headwinds
Iowa governor settles open records lawsuit filed by media groups
Sean 'Diddy' Combs accused of sexual abuse by two more women
‘Black Ink Crew Chicago’ star Ryan Henry shuts down 9 Mag Lacuna, Internet says 'karma is getting all devils'
