[ad_1]
Mikel Arteta has admitted that he and Arsenal have to commit to some of their football principles to get results against the biggest clubs in the Premier League.
Arsenal visit Anfield on Monday aiming to snap out of a streak in which they have conceded 20 goals in their last five visits to Liverpool. In fact, they have proven to be a thorn in the side of Liverpool with Arteta. Arsenal defeated the champions 2-1 at the Emirates Stadium in July and followed up with a penalty shootout victory at the Community Shield last month.
Those victories came with 31% and 41% possession respectively, due in large part to Arteta’s willingness to prepare relatively conservatively against the best opponents. He said that while he would have liked Arsenal to play with more control, they should not try to run before they can walk.
“Sometimes it’s what you want to do as a coach and sometimes it’s what you can do with the levels of players and performances that the best teams can do against you,” he said. “[In those games] obviously we had very long periods in which we had to defend more than we would like, but we have to prepare for the games by finding venues to win.
“I am here to win. I am here to find ways to do it. If I propose something very different that is exposing our team right now, I don’t think I’m acting in favor of the club or the players. The players we have available can change our game plan. We have to be able to adapt. I think in soccer now, one way doesn’t work unless you are superior to the opponent all the time. “
Arteta is hoping that Houssem Aouar, Lyon’s playmaker, will arrive to help Arsenal take the lead in matches, although they will have to significantly increase the offer of around £ 35 million that the Ligue 1 team has rejected. That probably means players have to be sold in the next 10 days and he acknowledged that Liverpool, which had little trouble closing a deal for Thiago Alcântara, are operating at a different level.
“We are at different times as clubs, with the success they have had over the years and how stable they have been in the Champions League and the Premier League,” he said. “We just try to get the right momentum by making deals that we think will make us stronger with the resources we have right now, and we try to do our best as a team to do it as quickly as possible. “
Kieran Tierney could return to Arsenal’s defense after recovering from the hip injury that prompted his late withdrawal from a 2-1 win over West Ham.
