Arsenal head coach Mikel Arteta lashed out at the media after his side defeated Chelsea on Wednesday. Per Arteta, after Arsenal’s 0-1 win over Chelsea – ‘nothing is broken inside’ the Gunners’ squad.
Arsenal caught a lead in the 16th minute away at Stamford Bridge, and maintained it throughout the match.
Emile Smith Rowe scored early in the match after goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga and midfielder Jorginho made errors.
The Gunners defended resiliently through the second half, with Kai Havertz falling over in the many fierce attempts he made.
For most of the first half, and even the second, the action was on the side of the Arsenal goalpost.
But Bernd Leno and Arsenal defenders defended their lead spectacularly.
And head coach Arteta talked to Sky Sports about the win, defending his players viciously.
Per Arteta, after Arsenal’s 0-1 win over Chelsea, “Nothing is broken inside”.
“I don’t know how they want to try from the outside,” Arteta said. “They try to put things on me that I never said.”
“You can see the spirit of the team from the first minute. You can never doubt the efforts,” he added.
Arteta Defends His Squad
The manager thus discussed how the media had misinterpreted his meaning before the match.
The Arsenal boss suggested in his pre-match interview that some of his players disappointed him.
Asked if his players were doing their, Arteta replied: “With the majority of them, yes.”
He followed up this reply with an even more cryptic comment: “When I said a majority, I did not say all of them. Some have a big contribution to make to those results.”
“Some of them can get to a certain level and you cannot push them any further,” he explained. “You want to evolve them but it’s not possible.”
But now, the Gunners boss felt his pre-match comments were taken out of context by some media outlets.
“I said if I don’t get 120 per cent off each player it’s my fault and responsibility. It wasn’t like this in the press. I’m so annoyed by that,” he said, after the match.
“My players, I will defend them from everybody for the rest of the time I’m here. They don’t deserve that.”
He then went on to boast that media criticism would not break his team and his players. The media can’t touch their bond.
