Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta provides team updates and the importance of Arsenal's academy ahead of Brighton clash
03/01/2025
Sobha Realty Training Ground, London, UK
03/01/2025
Sobha Realty Training Ground, London, UK
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00:00Morning.
00:01Can I start with some of the fitness of the squad?
00:03I know you can't have us without a friend to sit on the spot.
00:06Is he going to make the squad a priority?
00:07Yes, I think so, yeah.
00:09Has anyone else been affected by that bug?
00:11No, the ones with the illness, I think they're going to be OK, hopefully.
00:15They were trained today and if everybody's fine, they should be available.
00:19That's about how early he's starting as well.
00:21Is he still ahead?
00:24Yeah, I think he's starting to do some stuff on the pitch,
00:27so that's great news, so yeah, as quick as possible we want him available.
00:31Let's see how he progresses next week and then see if we get him available for the following week.
00:36Ben White and Tommy Asin, how did they get on?
00:40Ben is still a few weeks away, and Tommy again has done some stuff on the pitch,
00:45but now it's to see.
00:47Obviously it's been a long-term injury and we need to see how quickly he can progress
00:52and how Danny reacts, but hopefully good.
00:56Dejan Rice, he was on the bench for the Brentford game,
00:59he played games for the rest of January,
01:02is that something you're going to have to continue doing,
01:04to manage the minutes of all your players?
01:06Yeah, in his case especially, he plays so much football.
01:09We had nine games in this period, in this month,
01:13and he had some niggles in the last few games, he had to come off,
01:16and yeah, we have to manage every player and he's not an exception for sure.
01:21After the game against Brentford, you said you would be really happy with the players,
01:25but if you were to say, is it more likely that you will sign someone in January,
01:29or more likely that you won't sign someone in January?
01:32I don't know.
01:34Again, because the focus is with the players that we have,
01:37it's something extraordinary in the market that we can afford,
01:41and we believe that it's going to have a real impact in the team.
01:44We have to be open for that possibility always,
01:47because that's why we have the ability to change the score,
01:50to improve the score in the windows,
01:52but at the moment, the focus is what we have.
01:55In terms of what you do, do you see anyone maybe leaving this January?
01:59Someone like Kieran Tindy perhaps?
02:01Again, all the players that are there,
02:04I just want to focus on performing and impacting the team,
02:07and if something happens there, we will assess it.
02:10Just finally, Ethan Maneri,
02:12it was a really impressive match from him against Brentford.
02:15Is he the most natural replacement, you think, for Kaio Saka?
02:19I mean, he's a player who can play in various positions.
02:23He's not a position that he's played a lot, to be fair,
02:26even when he was in the academy level.
02:29But he can adapt, basically, for the demands that we have
02:33in two or three positions, and I think he did really well there.
02:37We'll go to Nick from the Premier League.
02:39Hi, Nick.
02:40Hello.
02:41Good to see you again.
02:42Can I please ask you about Dembikian Marino?
02:44At the start of his journey, Arsenal wasn't easy,
02:46but since then, he's settled really well.
02:49He has a really strong balance in his foot as well.
02:52How would you reflect the way he's settled here
02:54and the value he gives to his foot?
02:56Yeah, well, we expected a very fast integration
03:00because he's playing in the league,
03:02because he's such an intelligent and experienced player,
03:04and I think he fits very well in our model.
03:06The thing is that, as you said, he had an injury,
03:09he had another little niggle,
03:11and he had no pre-season because he played for Spain as well,
03:15and it took him just a while to start to get set,
03:18but now you can see straight away the impact that he has on the team,
03:21his intelligence, the goal threat that he offers to the team,
03:25and then more and more will come
03:27because he's a natural leader as well,
03:29and the moment that he grows in the role,
03:31I think we'll see much more from him.
03:33Can I please ask you about Diego Villas-Jesús,
03:35another goal on Wednesday night?
03:37I was wondering if things were going well for him.
03:39He dealt with injuries, for example.
03:41How much belief did he have to show in himself
03:43to show in him as well?
03:45Yeah, it's about supporting our players,
03:47and the players know that they have to go through sometimes
03:50periods that is not exactly how they planned it,
03:53because injuries are part of that,
03:55but as well they have to believe in themselves,
03:57and we have to make sure that if one day they doubt,
04:00we are there to recognise and make sure that they feel
04:04from our side how much we like them,
04:07and how happy we are to have them.
04:09They haven't won the Premier League
04:11in the last seven games,
04:13and they managed to really challenge you
04:15when you played them earlier this season.
04:17What do you expect from them tomorrow evening?
04:19Yeah, it's a really tough opponent,
04:21when you see the record they've got at home,
04:23their way of playing, the capacity they have
04:25to adapt to different scenarios,
04:27different shapes, really impressive.
04:29I think he's done something slightly different to before.
04:33I really like them, to be fair,
04:35really impressed with what they've done.
04:37George on VPC.
04:39I just wanted to go on Ethan and Miles,
04:41you've given them their Premier League debuts,
04:43is that something you wanted to change at Arsenal,
04:45just give them more youth players
04:47as a target yourself this season,
04:49or has it just happened because of injuries?
04:51Is that something you wanted to do as manager
04:53is try and bring more players through from the academy?
04:55The first thing that we want is to look in the academy.
04:59Can we get what we want in the academy?
05:01That's option number one.
05:03If we don't have it there,
05:05we have to look elsewhere.
05:07We have to develop our players to different positions
05:09and make them more versatile.
05:11We have to go in the market and recruit.
05:13I think those two players are playing
05:15because they deserve it,
05:17not because of injuries,
05:19because we had other options to play other players.
05:21They are playing because they deserve to play.
05:23You come from probably the greatest academy
05:25in world football,
05:27and I'm not going to ask you to compare
05:29the two, Barcelona and Barcelona,
05:31but is there things you've taken from Barcelona
05:34that you've maybe tried to implement
05:36in Arsenal's academy
05:38with the help of the club?
05:40I would love, but the regulations here
05:42unfortunately are very different
05:44and a lot of the things that in my opinion
05:46are the most impactful things,
05:48we cannot do them here.
05:50How do you see Arsenal's academy
05:52developing with you as manager
05:54over the next year?
05:56What would you like to see?
05:58Many more coming through,
06:00and especially that
06:02they feel that they have a chance
06:04at any moment,
06:06and the academy means players and staff
06:08because the first thing we do with the staff
06:10is exactly the same,
06:12that everybody has the ambition,
06:14the purpose and the intention
06:16to prepare and to show
06:18that at any moment they can come
06:20and be part of our team.
06:22Is the future bright for the academy
06:24and the progress you hope coming through
06:26with the players you've got?
06:28I think so, and we've put a lot of work
06:30and great work and we are on it.
06:32We know the level as well
06:34and with the system
06:36that we have at the moment
06:38where they are playing to where they have to come
06:40the gap is huge
06:42but we are trying to find ways
06:44to make sure that they can fulfil that gap
06:46as quick as possible.
06:48Hi, how are you?
06:50Happy New Year.
06:52With PSR and not being able to spend
06:54lots of money in clubs,
06:56academies are becoming more and more important.
06:58Is that another reason
07:00why you look to your academy
07:02because it saves you from spending money
07:04that maybe Arsenal don't actually have?
07:06Well, regardless of the PSR
07:08that's the first intention
07:10that we always had.
07:12The thing is what you need
07:14is available in the academy
07:16in the time frame that you need it as well
07:18because we can have a lot of talent
07:20but maybe that talent doesn't have a space
07:22in the squad.
07:24It's something that we have built over the years
07:26so we can fulfil those gaps
07:28with the players that we have.
07:30For many years players
07:32that have come through your academy
07:34have gone on to play international football
07:36especially for England
07:38people are beginning to already say about
07:40Lewis Scully going on and being
07:42especially as England haven't got a whole lot of left backs
07:44would you say that this year, 2025
07:46is a massive year for him
07:48not only for Arsenal but possibly for England?
07:50No, I think the focus has to be
07:52establishing first of all
07:54as a first team player and performing
07:56at the highest level and things will happen naturally
07:58if they have to happen.
08:00Is he good enough?
08:02I don't know, until you play at that level
08:04you cannot say.
08:06Now we have to prove it every single day
08:08every training session here
08:10are you good enough to sustain that level consistently
08:12that's the objective.
08:14And the Premier League table
08:16would suggest already
08:18it's either you or Liverpool
08:20that's going to win it. Chelsea have dropped
08:22with respect and Lingford are
08:24way back as well.
08:26Does that create extra pressure from you?
08:28How much do you gain from the last two years
08:30where you were in a two team race
08:32with City that maybe
08:34you can hump down Liverpool?
08:36All we have to be is
08:38show the same level of consistency
08:40and a bit more because
08:42in the last year
08:44we have been the best team in the league
08:46broken various
08:48records and still haven't
08:50won a major trophy.
08:52Something is missing, it can be very tiny
08:54small details
08:56you can pick up certain games
08:58certain situations
09:00but at the end we are so close
09:02we just need to flick that coin to the other side
09:04to make it happen
09:06and that's only going to happen if we do
09:08what we have to do and what we can control
09:10the rest is out of our hands.
09:14Just on Ethan and Gabriel Martinelli
09:16obviously two different
09:18types of profiles to play on the right
09:20and I was wondering
09:22with loads of games coming in January
09:24would there be times where you might still
09:26go to Gabriel Martinelli off the right
09:28because of what he can offer there
09:30compared to Ethan being quite different?
09:32Yeah, so I said it I think
09:34on day one when we got injured
09:36I think it's going to be
09:38a lot of different options
09:40especially with the amount of games that we have
09:42there's no one player that's going to play nine games in a row
09:44in that position, it's impossible.
09:46We look at that, we look at the opposition as well
09:48because especially the way they defend
09:50the way they occupy spaces
09:52one day a natural footed
09:54or inverted footed
09:56it will be more, we need more threat
09:58we need more players' feet and rotations in that unit
10:00in relation to that
10:02we'll make decisions and as well
10:04players' performance, that simple.
10:06And on Martinelli, I know you mentioned
10:08the Everton game last season
10:10but you had a few games there
10:12a few seasons ago
10:14I don't know if
10:16you'd look to those as reference as well
10:18or not because I guess the spaces
10:20teams give you now are quite different
10:22to the spaces they gave you then
10:24or would that not come into your mind?
10:26Yes, of course we look at
10:28a lot of things, the most recent one as well is
10:30when he had to play at Palace
10:32and he played and Palace defended
10:34with a back five
10:36and quite deep as well and he produced
10:38an assist and a goal coming
10:40from that position so
10:42those are great, you know Gabi can play
10:44Rash is available, obviously he fits
10:46it really, really well, we have other options
10:48as well.
10:50If you win tomorrow
10:52you'll be two points better off
10:54after 20 games compared to last season
10:56do you get the sense that your team
10:58is performing to a higher level this time around?
11:00To a higher level, yes
11:02and especially to a higher level with
11:04a lot of very different circumstances
11:06and challenges that we had
11:08last year, that's why I think we have made
11:10big improvements
11:12in that sense.
11:14Same time last year, it would have been
11:16fourth place, you were saying it would be second
11:18this time around but the gap ironically
11:20is actually bigger to the top
11:22because Liverpool had such an impressive start
11:24that gap, do you look at that as motivation
11:26or do you try and put that out of the team's
11:28mind and just focus more on the tournament?
11:30Yes, we don't know
11:32and this can fluctuate any week so again
11:34it sounds boring but it's
11:36about our performance and looking after
11:38ourselves, the things that we can control
11:40and keep evolving and improving
11:42and if we perform at the level that we are
11:44doing, we'll win a lot of games
11:46but the reality is that every game for everybody
11:48is a massive challenge.
11:50Simon Standard?
11:52It sounded fairly positive
11:54is there a chance you could be back
11:56playing before the end of this month?
12:00It might be a possibility
12:02but obviously he hasn't done anything yet
12:04with the team, the knee looks good
12:06he's reacted really well
12:08the first few weeks
12:10everything going smoothly and now
12:12he needs to start to load
12:14he needs to start to get through
12:16many more things
12:18that up to now he hasn't been able to do
12:20but hopefully he's good
12:22his work ethic is unbelievable
12:24naturally he's a really gifted player
12:26so I'm very positive that
12:28we're going to have him quite early
12:30but I don't know when.
12:32Jorginho and Thomas are both out of contract
12:34at the end of the season
12:36what's the sort of situation there
12:38is it a concern for you that they can now
12:40talk to foreign clubs
12:42and can you envision a world where you could lose both of them
12:44for free?
12:46Well when that situation is
12:48there in the contract, that's a possibility
12:50it's close
12:52communication with them to understand
12:54as well what their idea
12:56is, what they want to do
12:58express as well our intentions
13:00and then let's decide for everybody
13:02what is the best option there
13:04but it's two players that I am very very
13:06happy with that they are such a value
13:08in the squad
13:10and I want to keep them as well with
13:12a right mind front because the most
13:14important part of the season is coming now
13:16James ESPN?
13:18I would just follow on from that
13:20you want to keep them out
13:22What I can say is that
13:24it's not about what I want
13:26it's about what those players had in their minds as well
13:28and their situations
13:30and I don't want to start
13:32these conversations now
13:34I want to have this conversation much later
13:36because the focus now has to be on what we have to do
13:38in the season, they can understand
13:40the intentions and then we'll see
13:42what we can do
13:44You said earlier that you've been so close
13:46the last couple of years and perhaps something
13:48is slightly missing, but there is this
13:50idea amongst some supporters that to win
13:52the league you've got to go inside and strike
13:54Do you feel that's too simplistic
13:56given the number of goals you scored last season
13:58and how well the team is playing?
14:00I don't know, obviously
14:02it can be a perception, it can be a reality
14:04Signing somebody is not enough, that's for sure
14:06because that signing has to score
14:08then how many goals?
14:10It has to happen a lot of things, sign
14:12and then score 20 goals from here to the end
14:14and then do you have a better chance?
14:16Maybe yes, I don't know
14:18but I'm very happy with the players that we have
14:20I mean when you look at the amount of goals that we have scored
14:22as well, it's
14:24more than enough to win a Premier League
14:26at our numbers as well
14:28but the reality is that if somebody is doing more
14:30that's life, so we have to be better
14:32People also have to be a bit realistic
14:34about what's possible in January
14:36because it is a profitable market
14:38Well, that market
14:40obviously it's much more limited
14:42than the one in the summer
14:44but I don't know, people's
14:46expectations and dreams and that
14:48I think is something good