Mikel Arteta Shares Five Reasons Why Arsenal “Deserved” Victory Over Everton
Mikel Arteta is confident that Arsenal should have triumphed over Everton on Sunday after “dominating” the match against the Toffees.
Arsenal held 77% possession and attempted 13 shots on target, yet they only crafted one significant chance, continuing to face challenges in generating opportunities from open play as Everton was content to defend deep, resulting in a .
This was a lost chance for Arsenal to narrow the gap to Liverpool, who also experienced a surprise draw against Fulham, and Arteta contended that the final outcome was unjust for his team.
“I am quite disappointed not to have secured a victory because clearly, if any team merited to win, it would be Arsenal,” Arteta asserted. “We conceded nothing, allowing no shots, controlled our play, and kept them from countering, not even conceding any set pieces. Our high press was excellent. We had them.”
“We created opportunities, but we lacked that final 20 metres necessary to finish the chances, which is essential when dominating play as we did. Ultimately, you have to strive to achieve the greatest chance of winning. Even after a draw, we desire more. Even with a win, we always seek improvement. However, I can’t ask much more from the boys except for them to put the ball in the net.”
Arteta further acknowledged that teaching his players to capitalize on these vital moments in front of the goal is a challenging endeavor.
“That’s a tough task,” he confessed. “In the end, you need that spark and precision.”
“We created opportunities; this could have easily ended 2-0 or 3-0, and no one would be discussing it. However, the fact remains it was 0-0, and they are not going to highlight all the remarkable things the team accomplished in the game.”
“It’s certainly not a matter of energy. When I observe my team’s tracking back, it’s truly impressive. Every three days, they cover 70 metres, and the entire team puts in the effort. So it’s very challenging to ask anything more from them when they already want it.”
