Arteta decides to focus on the team’s defensive control…
Mikel Arteta hailed the team’s defensive resilience against Everton at home in what was a disappointing stalemate as we failed to capitalise on Liverpool’s slip against Fulham.
The visitors only managed two shots in the entire game with none on-target, and Arteta took pride in restricting the opposition to barely any action near our goal.
Everton are struggling yet again in the Premier League this season and have an atrocious record away from Goodison Park, though keeping them to such a minimum is slightly impressive.
While Arteta acknowledged that the attacking department fell short in the game, he was rather overzealous in his praise for the rearguard.
It takes our record to three Premier League games without a goal from open play, causing us to drop four points in two games.
“When we have to track back 70 metres, we are the best in the world by far,” Arteta told Arsenal Media.
“It’s not about energy. The way they want it, unbelievable. The way they try. Every single player is playing with a purpose to make things happen.
“The frustrating part is that they are there. We are trying everything and not getting the points. We have to continue.”
Every season under Arteta we reach a point where we’re having serious discussions about our attacking play and creating chances away from set-pieces.
A break to Dubai saw a change in our fortunes last season as we went on a scoring spree for a few months, but we’re back there again this term.
Essentially, our lack of investment in that area of the pitch continues to harm us with Bukayo Saka carrying the burden on his own.
It’s not something that can be fixed on the coaching pitch – no amount of coaching will fix Kai Havertz, Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Martinelli’s profligacy in front of goal.
Something must be done in January if the club has desires to win a major trophy.
