Mikel Arteta warns that Arsenal are ‘very far’ from their best despite their form this season
Mikel Arteta warns that his Arsenal squad are ‘very far’ from their best, despite their title-chasing form this season… as Spaniard calls on his side to ‘kill games’ and play to a ‘different level’
- Arsenal have defied the odds by becoming of the Premier League’s title chasers
- However, despite their impressive form, Mikel Arteta says that can get better
- The Spanish manager urged his side to concentrate fully on their title charge
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Mikel Arteta has warned Arsenal‘s rivals that not one of his players has reached their peak and this title-chasing team remain ‘very far’ from their best.
The manager revealed that he has ideas and principles he has yet to implement as they look to build lasting success at The Emirates.
Arsenal sit a point off Premier League leaders Manchester City – who have a game in hand – ahead of Saturday’s clash with Brighton.
Arteta’s young side have made huge strides this season and could match the points tally of the Invincibles, who captured Arsenal’s last title in 2003-04.
But on Friday the manager insisted: ‘We are still very far (from where I want). We can be much, much, much better at a lot of things still. Huge margins.
Mikel Arteta has suggested that his Arsenal side can get better despite their impressive form
The Gunners were frontrunners to win the league before some underwhelming results recently
‘We can be much better in our build-up, attacking man-to-man situations, attacking open spaces, defending deep, set pieces, we have huge margins to (make up) in terms of game management… we can be more ruthless to kill games.
‘There are a lot of things that we have to seek for improvement because we don’t have a single player who has reached his peak. Not one.
‘And when that happens we as coaches have to be curious to understand: what can we do to get them better?’
Arteta had to compromise on his philosophy after taking over in 2019 but has now built a team which could return to the top of the table if City slip up at Everton on Saturday.
And over the coming years, Arteta knows that by ’empowering each other’ his players can take their game to ‘a different level’.
‘There is a lot to do,’ he said. ‘There are certain players as well that have to go to a different level in terms of their leadership, in terms of what they are able to transmit to the group and the responsibility and the accountability they have to take for what happens here every single day, and the demands and standards we want at the club.’
The Spaniard confirmed that there are still ideas he would like to introduce. But he doesn’t feel that his players are ready.
When asked if this frustrated him, Arteta said: ‘No, no. At the end they are the protagonists. We have to try to give them the tools that they know how to manipulate.
The Gunners kept alive their faint hopes of a Premier league crown with victory at Newcastle
‘If not we are going to put them in certain positions that they are not going to be comfortable with.
‘There are moments to put the players in those moments and now is not the moment to do that, in my opinion.’
Arsenal kept their title hopes alive with victory at Newcastle last weekend, after Arteta used footage from Amazon’s All Or Nothing series to motivate his players.
The manager had been avoiding watching the show but said on Friday: ‘I think I needed to watch it. I put on just a part of it, I think it was a minute and 46 seconds… in the summer I’m going to watch it.’
