LONDON – Imagine how good Arsenal could be if Mikel Arteta receives the financial backing he requested this week. The Spanish used the buoyancy created by Wednesday’s unexpected victory over Premier League champion Liverpool to highlight a “huge” gap between the top two in England, suggesting “there is no magic” to improve the team further. beyond a heavy investment.
What Arteta accomplished here was not very short. There are not many people in world football with a more intimate knowledge of Pep Guardiola’s tactical approach than the 38-year-old, given that he spent more than three years as a coach under him in City, yet few thought the apprentice would defeat the teacher given the tools available to every man.
It is worth remembering that this is only Arteta’s 25th game in management. If José Mourinho or Diego Simeone had managed a master class of counterattack in an FA Cup semifinal, either of them would have been praised for their tactical nous honed through years of experience.
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Arsenal beat Manchester City 2-0 in an unrecognizable way from previous meetings between clubs dating back to their victory by the same scoreboard in January 2015. On that day, Arsene Wenger was credited with finally abandoning the same open and expansive style. for a more pragmatic style. Getting closer. It turned out to be a false sunrise, but Arteta has now managed it for the second time in four days. These are weird circumstances, of course, with Liverpool playing for the stats and City focused on the Champions League, but the Gunners have beaten the top two teams in England in the same week by showing the kind of commitment, focus and discipline that Many of the component parts have often been missing.
David Luiz was funny when these two sides met last month, leaving the bench to give City two goals and to be sent off. In his role as Sky Sports expert, Jamie Carragher claimed that Luiz had no future at Arsenal. Arguably he was the man of the match tonight, leading a rear action reminiscent of Per Mertesacker’s display against Chelsea in the 2017 FA Cup Final.
“David doesn’t need a lot of administration,” Arteta told ESPN. “What he needs is for us to trust him and have no doubt about what he can do, and the best way to do it is to make him play. He has done it throughout his career, he has had some difficult moments and some incredible moments, but the Great athletes go through those moments and I’m happy that he’s at the level he’s playing at now. “
Granit Xhaka and Dani Ceballos worked tirelessly in midfield to protect the five and help the transition when City lost possession. Xhaka’s Arsenal career was dashed when he was stripped of the captaincy in November after an abusive trade with Arsenal fans in a match against Crystal Palace at Emirates Stadium. It may be an exaggeration to suggest that the absence of followers is helping him, but his vocal and organized presence is easier to hear in empty stadiums, and parties like this show why Wenger signed him, Unai Emery captained him, and Arteta gave him the opportunity. to relive their season.
Ceballos is on loan and is believed to prefer meeting with Real Madrid for another chance to establish himself at the Bernabéu, but at the moment he seems like an Arsenal player, one that Arteta clearly wants to keep permanently. Ainsley Maitland-Niles was used as a left back, a decision that might have been considered ridiculous during Emery’s reign, but which contributed to collective success here.
Arsenal is weighing the financial ramifications of the season’s conclusions before committing funds to the market. Arteta does not disagree with the club’s power brokers, but, like any head coach would, he is pushing for the maximum investment to help restore the Gunners to former glory.
“We are having a lot of internal conversations,” said Arteta. “We are all on the same page. We always agree with the plan that we have implemented. Communication is always very clear and strong. It is about the possibilities that we will have and at this moment we have some uncertainties. The way we finish the season, yes we are in europe if we win [the FA Cup]It will help because financially we will be stronger and that is where we have to be a little patient. “
Results like this strengthen his endless argument. Arsenal looks trained. Wenger’s laissez-faire style promoted freedom of expression, but lacked the structure Emery was appointed to deliver. Arteta is managing to line up both, with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scoring two wonderful goals at 19 minutes and 19 minutes from time.
The first was a magnificent mid-volley stab through Ederson from Nicolas Pepe’s cross; the second came after picking up the good pass from Kieran Tierney and placing a low end under the City goalie. There’s a financial gamble in offering a 31-year-old man the three-year, £ 250,000-a-week deal he wants, but Arteta bringing out the best in Aubameyang in this way will make that risk feel less daunting.
The city improved after halftime, holding Arsenal in its own box for long periods, but Emiliano Martínez was not unduly exercised. Perhaps it was a wake-up call for Guardiola, who is supposed to be the brain on his side for the competitions they can win.
Because the league was already lost before last month’s restart, retaining the FA Cup was seen as a springboard for the Champions League next month. That last competition remains the holy grail for Guardiola, and there is a good chance that such a talented team will deliver when it matters most, but there is now more doubt about City than there should be, even with a 2-1 lead against Real. Madrid of their round-trip match of the round of 16 in February.
“I don’t have to tell them, they have to know, sorry,” said Guardiola. “We know the standards we have to be in in these kinds of competitions and maybe we will learn it, maybe not. The last match against Bournemouth was not good and today the first half was not good.”
“We fight to play at our level. It doesn’t take a genius to realize that we have to raise our standards against Madrid if we want to have a chance.”
Before that, Arsenal will have a chance to win a trophy that represents tangible progress in Arteta’s first season. It would also improve the case for spending.
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