“We will take the positives,” Mikel Arteta says as Arsenal returns to Emirates stadium

Arsenal completed their tour to Asia with a 1-0 loss to Tottenham Hotspurs in the first ever North London derby played outside the Europe. The Gunners had played AC Milan and Newcastle United in Singapore before facing city rivals in Hong Kong.

Softfootball watched all the games as the Arsenal played in the cheers of their fans in Asia. They had defeated AC Milan 1-0 in regulation time and defeated Newcastle United with a late penalty from Martin Odegaard. Although their only loss in Asia came at the hands of  Pape Sarr’s tricky goal from halfway line.

The matches saw Arsenal also hand debuts to all their new buys – Martin Zubimendi, Christian Norgaard, Crithian Mosquera, Kepa Arrizabalaga and Viktor Gyokeres. Only Noni Madueke who is still on extended holiday missed out in action.

Arteta was somewhat pleased with the preparation and the qualities he saw in the matches. While speaking on the preseason tour to the Arsenal media via the club website, the gaffer sounded satisfied.

Arteta explained:

“In terms of the preparation, the opposition that we have, the atmosphere, the stadium that we played in. We didn’t manage to get the result that we wanted, but a lot to take.

“But a lot of positives to take from the camp and the boys, we go again on Wednesday.

“I think the tour in general, a big thank you, especially to all our supporters that have been with us the last 10-12 days because they made us feel incredibly privileged to represent this club and we have something really special and a big gratitude to them.

“Then, in terms of what we have achieved in the three games, really pleased.

On the attitude of all the new players in preseason, the gaffer explained that he was surprised with their response.

He shared that:

“A big surprise, because whenever we have them [new signings] to participate in training sessions, in games, the attitude and especially the quality that they have has been incredible, so very pleased. As I said, a lot of great things to take from this tour.

“The incredible camaraderie that we had between the players and the staff, and how I think everyone values where we are. It’s been a long two weeks, with a lot happening, a lot of things that you have to adapt in your preparation.

“But the attitude of everybody to make it happen, especially to everybody who has been involved in preparing all of the tour for us. A big thank you because they’ve done an amazing job.”

The Arsenal return to London with the Emirates Cup next in the calendar as they face Villareal and Athletic Club Bilbao as the opponents at the Emirates stadium.