Arsenal started off the new Premier League season with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over arch-rivals Manchester United at Old Trafford, marking the perfect start to the season for Mikel Arteta’s side. The Gunners, who are currently chasing a first league title in over two decades, had to work tirelessly for the win against a Red Devils side, who were eager to leave last season’s disappointment behind.
The decisive moment came from a set piece, which allowed Arsenal’s centre-back Ricardo Caliafori to break the deadlock and settle into the match.
Speaking after the game via Arsenal’s official website, Arteta reflected on the importance of the win. he said,
“Big, big result coming in the first game of the season at Old Trafford. When you feel that they are building something special, momentum, with a new signing and they want to kick on the season in a good way and you are able to come away with the win, I’m very happy and proud of the team.”
Arteta also applauded the determination shown by the team in response to the challenge faced during the game, he says;
“Yes, because we showed it in a different way today. I think we did two things very well. One, to take the set-piece and then react to, especially, mistakes. Some of them are necessary, some of them unusual. But the way every single player reacted to that gives us the opportunity to win the game. If not, it’s impossible. And that’s about how we compete and how much we want it as a team.”
Even though Arsenal did not play at their very best, Arteta emphasized the boost in confidence from grinding out the victory:
“Well, that gives you certainly momentum and confidence – two very important things. Because you know that when you know your standards in certain aspects, which today we weren’t, being fair, we can still come away and find a way to win the game. And the team has to find that resilience throughout the season for ten months in different contexts to be able to do that. Of course, we have to improve a lot of things and that will happen very soon. But in terms of managing to get that into a very positive result, that’s a great way to do it.”
The debut of summer signing Viktor Gyökeres also drew praise from the manager:
“He did a lot of things very good. You can tell, especially in our high pressing, the rhythm that we demand, especially in the first half, we’re giving a bit too much time. It’s something that we have to work on, especially there. And then in the finalising situation, he didn’t have that many chances to do that because, as I said, on the previous action before we had to play that last ball that the line was standing still with 40 metres behind, we managed to put the ball through to exploit his quality. But overall, coming away to Manchester United, winning your first game with Arsenal, it’s a good start.”
Arteta also discussed the impact of Riccardo Calafiori on the team:
“He has the capacity to change the energy. He comes in this room and he changes the energy in the room, he changes the energy in the team. He has an aura, he has a presence that is special. And then he’s a player that is very unpredictable for the opponent because he can occupy very different spaces, he can do things in and around your box, in the middle, in the opposition box, that is very difficult to predict. So, very happy with him.”
With a strong outing , a good debut for Gyökeres, and Arteta’s tactical discipline on display, Arsenal have started their 100th consecutive top-flight season on a high, possibly setting a positive tone for the long season ahead.
