Arsenal were victorious in their first UEFA Champions League match this season finishing with a 4-0 win over European rivals PSV Eindhoven.
Boss Mikel Arteta comments on the deserved win for the team who faced challenges with pace and versatility creating an enjoyable game
Boss Mikel Arteta comments on the deserved win for the team who faced challenges with pace and versatility creating an enjoyable game
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SportsTranscript
00:00 It was a beautiful night, obviously after such a long time. We wanted to produce the
00:07 right performance and try to win the game. It was great to see the atmosphere, the Champions
00:13 League music everywhere. I think it was getting a bit emotional before it and we showed. I
00:18 think especially in both boxes today we were exceptional and that was the difference in
00:22 the game I think.
00:23 Were you emotional?
00:24 I was, yeah. I was really excited about it. I wanted to control it, I don't want to show
00:30 too much but I was really excited. At the end it's part of the journey, the journey
00:34 started last year and we earned the right to be in this competition which is what we
00:38 have to be as a club and now we have the responsibility to produce what we have to produce to stay
00:44 at this level.
00:45 It might seem strange to say after a 4-0 win but do you think there's potentially even
00:51 more you could have seen from your side today? There were a few chances put away, not put
00:56 away sorry, and more you maybe could have done. So is it almost more to come even after
01:00 a 4-0 win?
01:01 I agree and especially from box to box there were things we should have done much, much
01:06 better and that's every single day you have to be at it, you have to be really analytical
01:12 to try to improve but at the same time credit to the boys to play the way they play in certain
01:17 moments and to score four goals in the Champions League against a team that hasn't lost a single
01:22 game, credit to them as well.
01:24 You said yourself you tried to take the emotion out of it despite being emotional yourself,
01:30 you must have been impressed with the way your players, for some of them the biggest
01:36 night of their careers, managed to do exactly the same?
01:41 I could sense that and I think we have drive that energy and that emotion in the right
01:45 way. Talking about the enjoyment, you know we have to obviously compete at this level
01:50 but there has to be a part that we have to enjoy as well, those moments, those nights
01:54 because it's what at the end you remember and I think it's going to be a good memory.
02:00 Do you think in a way this was a blessing for the team, getting away from playing against
02:06 big defensive blocks in the Premier League and being able to express and click and find
02:10 that sort of fun, joyous, attacking football at last season, find that identity a bit more?
02:17 Well obviously every opponent brings different challenges, as well when you score early in
02:22 the game that helps and that hasn't been the case too much this season and that's why we
02:27 have to face opponents doing other things as well. But certainly when you see this team
02:32 running and full of pace and being vertical it's a joy to watch.
02:37 Given you've got the derby here on Sunday, was it particularly pleasing that you scored
02:43 three goals in the first half and were presumably able to start saving players in the last stages?
02:49 Yes, we could manage the minutes of some of them, especially because where they're coming
02:52 from and with the national team they played a lot of minutes. And as well to give players
02:56 two minutes that fully deserves. I was really emotional when I saw the reception on Emile
03:01 as well, he's a player that hasn't played much yet and to get the reception he got was
03:08 well deserved and I'm so happy for him as well.
03:10 You talked about wanting your team to kill games off earlier, they did that in the first
03:17 half, how pleasing were you about that?
03:19 Very good and that's what we have to do. That's why I mentioned in the box we were exceptional
03:23 today, we were ruthless, we took our chances, the finishing quality was top but as well
03:28 we could have done more. And probably the manager, we are looking sometimes a bit more
03:33 on that and in other parts.
03:34 It's obviously Pikaia's first game in Champions League tonight, you wouldn't really have known
03:39 it from watching him, did he show he sort of deserves to be on this stage tonight?
03:43 Yes, but to be fair some of the boys now they play at an international level and they have
03:48 big roles in their national teams and you can sense that as well, that they are not
03:52 just part of the squad, they have quite a responsibility and they are big players there
03:56 and that's very helpful for the team.
03:58 Obviously David Garay was picked over Aaron Ramsey again tonight, what was the thinking
04:02 behind that decision, maybe not choosing to rotate the goalkeepers as you hinted you
04:06 might do at the weekend?
04:07 It's the belief that I had in the team that I wanted to play with the expected opponent
04:14 and not only that, the changes that we made with other players it was for the same reason.
04:18 We all know how hard it is to compete in the Premier League and the Champions League, but
04:24 is that sort of performance better preparation than a week at home?
04:28 Winning always helps and when you see that dressing room how happy they were today, the
04:32 energy, if tomorrow I tell them to train they will train for sure and now we have three
04:37 days to prepare a big game again, a really special game for us and we'll try to do it
04:42 in the best way.
04:43 Miguel, you saw Kai Havertz come in different roles throughout the game, how pleased were
04:49 you with his performance, did you get closer to the full confident player that he is and
04:53 do we know he can be here?
04:54 He was very connected today in the game and it's true that by asking him to play in two
04:59 different roles in regards to the opponent's behaviours and he's so intelligent the way
05:03 he does it, he's just finishing one or two actions that we had again and he's coming
05:08 and he's so willing to do it.
05:11 Thank you.
05:12 [BLANK_AUDIO]