Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta hails ‘will to win’ after downing Manchester United 2-0
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Arsenal's William Saliba (second from left) celebrates scoring his team's second goal with midfielder Bukayo Saka and defender Jakub Kiwior.
PHOTO: AFP
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LONDON – Arsenal’s set-piece prowess in the victory over Manchester United on Dec 4 showed the Gunners’ ability to score goals in different ways and their sheer will to win after a difficult spell, boss Mikel Arteta said.
Jurrien Timber and William Saliba both scored from corners in a 2-0 win, which was Arsenal’s fourth on the bounce in all competitions, following a draw and back-to-back defeats before the international break.
Even with regular centre-back Gabriel Magalhaes out injured, Arsenal still posed a constant threat from corners and could have scored more than the two goals they managed from a succession of dangerous set pieces at the Emirates Stadium.
The Brazilian defender had scored from five corners since the start of last season, the most of any Premier League player.
Arteta, who briefly chuckled after being asked yet another question about their proficiency from dead balls, said this element of Arsenal’s game was about being a more complete team.
“We want to be very dangerous and very effective from every angle and every phase of play and we work on all of that,” he told reporters.
“Today we could have scored from open play like we did against West Ham (United), against Sporting (Lisbon), so the team really has that belief that from every angle we have the mentality to (cause) threat to the opponent and to try to score.”
Since the start of last season, the Gunners have 21 goals from corners, more than any other Premier League team, with Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka getting seven assists apiece.
In fact, against the Red Devils, the Gunners had more shots from corners (seven) than open play (six).
“Until the set pieces, the game didn’t have too many opportunities for both sides – the set pieces killed the game,” Ruben Amorim told the BBC, after suffering his first defeat as United manager.
The Gunners’ victory also came as leaders Liverpool dropped two points in a 3-3 draw at Newcastle United, meaning Arsenal cut the gap at the top to seven points.
Arteta insisted he did not allow the changing score in Liverpool’s match to affect his approach to Arsenal’s game, but said his team’s response to setbacks earlier in the season showed a positive mentality.
“The will to win is there,” he said. “We tried our best to do that. It’s true that we went through a lot in that period, (with) the schedule and the position that we played. A lot of things and you have to react.”
Rice added on Amazon Prime: “People get carried away with the title talk. I was involved in my first one last year and you just need to be in and around it in February time.”
Meanwhile, Amorim’s first league defeat since his former club Sporting were beaten by Vitoria Guimaraes in December 2023 left United 11th on 19 points. But he still saw positives.
He said: “I make the evaluation of a game regardless of the result. The 4-0 (win against Everton), you can take positive things but you have to improve and you already knew that.
“You can feel it in the first half, especially at the end of the first half. You can feel that they were not comfortable, you can feel it in the stadium, so you can take that.” REUTERS
