The Arsenal players will stand in line and give the newly crowned Premier League champions Liverpool an honorary guard on Anfield on Sunday afternoon – and Mikel Arteta will force them to do this
Mikel Arteta wants his Arsenal players to feel the pain when they perform an honorary guard for Liverpool on Sunday -and use it as a motivation to win the Premier League title next season.
There were questions if the Gunners would follow the lead of Chelsea and the champions of Arne Slot on the field in Anfield would cheer. It only comes four days after the exit of the Champions League confirmed through the hands of Paris Saint-Germain that Arsenal would be a fifth consecutive year.
But the Arsenal boss insists that it is only good for his players to pay tribute to the champions. And he feels that it will do them well after they fail this term.
Arteta addressed the guard of honor in his press conference on Friday. He stated: “You have to float, to motivate you and pain is probably a good one to use if you don't really want to do something, but it's the right thing to do and then use it as a motivation for next season.
“But they (Liverpool) earn that guard of honor because they have been the best team and they earn it completely.
“If someone is better, you have to applaud and accept it and try to reach that level.”
Arsenal arrives with 15 points on Anfield with a backlog of Liverpool. Their shape has been given a recession in recent weeks, because they are increasingly concentrating on Europe, and they will guarantee fewer points this period than they have succeeded in both last two seasons – when they finished second place to Manchester City.
The Gunners could again finish second in the competition. They take a three -point lead over the third placed city in their remaining three games.
But after their failure to start a serious title challenge to Liverpool and their last four outputs of both the Champions League and the Carabao Cup this season, Areta has imposed criticism. The Spaniard has only one trophy-the 2020 FA Cup-OM to show his five and a half years.
“I have so much to achieve and that is what drives me every day,” he continued. “The people and the staff and the players drive me every day.
“If there is someone who has raised the standard and expectations the highest, I have been. Because I have demanded and expected much more, and then much more, and then much more.
“For me it is the only way to do it, for everyone to have really high standards and requirements. We are very, very close to achieving it. I understand the disappointment and criticism. It's all part of it.
“At the end there is one winner and the rest will not win, so they have to reinvent themselves and do it better and that is part of the cycle.”
Become a member of our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of mirror football content. We also deal with our members of the community on special offers, promotions and advertisements from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can view every time you like. If you are curious, you can read our privacy statement.
Comments