Mikel Arteta breathed a sigh of relief, as we secured our first premier league win since the first week of November.
An Alex Lacazette’s penalty, a Granit Xhaka’s free-kick and a second half chip by Bukayo Saka helped secure a 3-1 win against Chelsea. In a match we weren’t given much chances, we started with so much confidence and energy.
“It’s a really big win for us,” Arteta told Sky Sports afterwards. “We were really disappointed with the results – not so much the performances. Our players were suffering, our fans were suffering.
“It doesn’t get any better than winning a London derby against Chelsea on Boxing Day. Hopefully this is a turning point. I know they can play at this level. We know how good Chelsea are but big moments in the game we were the better team.
“The injuries, the Covid, playing 10 men…you start to think what do we need to win a match.
“It’s nice to give something back to fans because I can imagine they have been really disappointed. We started well and we were dominant. That gives the team confidence.”
Covid-19 caused the absence of Brazilian trio, David Luiz, Willian and Gabriel. This forced Arteta to trust youngsters Emile Smith-Rowe and Gabriel Martinelli. Pablo Mari also played in central defence.
“We had a good mixture today of youth and some senior players,” replied Arteta when asked if the young players had made the difference.
“I think all of them were superb, I would not like to just pick on certain players because the atmosphere from the players that were there supporting on the bench, even the mood before the game, we were talking about it and it was really good.
“It’s not easy at this moment and I’m proud of the group of players that we have and the team spirit that we have as well.
“We have to carry on. We mentioned it’s a big week for us. We started really good the week, let’s carry on. We know we have a lot of things to improve and be better at, so let’s focus on that as well and move on to the next game.”
