Mikel Arteta severely criticized his team`s performance following their 2-2 draw against Liverpool at Anfield, despite coming back from a two-goal deficit.
Arsenal found themselves trailing 2-0 at halftime after conceding two goals in quick succession within two minutes.
Goals from Gabriel Martinelli and Mikel Merino helped them recover, though Merino was later sent off for accumulating two yellow cards.
While Arteta was pleased with the team`s fighting spirit and reaction, he expressed his anger that they made the task so difficult for themselves by starting poorly.
The Gunners boss admitted that “a lot of parts” of his team`s display were upsetting.
He stated: “A lot of parts, especially defending the standards that we have and the errors after we gave the ball away.”
He continued: “Very far off it. Really upset, yeah we had a reaction. I hate reaction I like action.”
Arteta was visibly upset, adding: “I was really really upset. What I saw in the first 25 minutes, 35 minutes. Some of the actions…I was killing myself.”
When questioned about the potential psychological impact of their recent Champions League exit to PSG, Arteta instead focused on challenging his squad. He told them they needed to demonstrate they are the best team after those who finished above them (implying proving themselves after missing out on the title to Liverpool).
Arteta also declined to use fatigue or injuries, significant issues this season, as an excuse for the performance. However, he reiterated his earlier admission that the squad was short of the quality needed to win the Premier League title.
He explained: “There are a lot of factors. We knew from the beginning of the season that our squad was super short.”
He added that the small squad size, combined with some players having injury histories, meant there was “a high probability of getting injured.”
Despite acknowledging this challenge, he stressed the club`s commitment to improvement: “We will do everything that we can to improve the team and especially improve the players that we already have.”
He concluded by stating they would look to the transfer market for potential reinforcements: “Whatever the market offers to give us a better chance to win for sure we will try to do it.”
Marcus Bellamy