Mikel Arteta has urged his Arsenal players to turn the pain of their Carabao Cup final defeat to Manchester City into fuel for the Premier League title race, insisting the disappointment must not be wasted.
Speaking after the Wembley setback, the Arsenal boss made it clear that moments like this should either break a team or sharpen it, and he wants his players to choose the second option.
Reacting in a video posted by Sky Sport via their x handle, Arteta said:
Use it, use it the first part. Uh, if it’s like a ball of, uh, poison that you have in your tummy, take that as quick as possible out, uh, with clarity, okay? How can I use that, uh, to make myself better, to make the team, uh, better?
It was a raw and honest reflection from a manager who knows his side cannot afford to dwell for too long if they are serious about winning the league.
But while Arteta wants the emotional weight of the loss managed properly, he also admitted some of that hurt should remain.
And there is a part that I think it has to be there, and I think this is not gonna go in the next thirty years, because when you have the opportunity to win a final in Wembley, you have to get it done.
That line says everything about Arsenal’s current stage under him. They are no longer just a team trying to compete. They are a team expected to deliver.
Arteta continued by stressing that the memory of the loss should become part of Arsenal’s identity moving forward.
So that has to stay there, and that’s part of who you’re going to be in the next few weeks, in the next few months, in the next few years, and, and learn from that, and, and make sure that that fire is still in that belly, remembering what happened.
It is the kind of mentality he hopes can carry Arsenal through the pressure of a title run-in.
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Softfootball reported that Arteta is now focused on making sure the squad responds the right way, especially with crucial fixtures ahead. The Arsenal boss has also backed Bukayo Saka to return to top form as the club enters what could be the defining weeks of their season. After the pain of losing to City in the cup final, the message from Arteta is simple: suffer it, learn from it, and use it.
