Mikel Arteta could hardly have imagined a more impressive start to his Arsenal side’s campaign. They equaled a club record of eight consecutive Champions League games without conceding a goal with a 3-0 away win over Slavia Prague on Tuesday.
They have soared in both European competition and the Premier League, and there continues to be cautious optimism among red-half supporters in north London that Arsenal’s season may finally be here. However, it is inevitable that the painful memories of previous campaigns will remain forever in the minds of fans. And although Gary Neville predicts they could stumble ahead of Saturday night’s game against Sunderland, Sunderland sit comfortably in fourth place in the table after 10 games. Granit Xhaka will have a big name coming up against them, with Granit Xhaka revealing new insight into the influence Arteta has had on him, while the Gunners’ current players are giving the manager a selection problem.
Neville expects to concede
So far, only Liverpool and Manchester City have picked up points against teams above the table, but Neville believes Sunderland, who remain unbeaten at home, could join the exclusive club at the Stadium of Light.
The Manchester United legend told the Stick to Football podcast: “They’re awkward Sunderland, right? I’ll go with one win and one loss. I don’t really know why they did that. I like Arsenal but Sunderland are tough there.”
The Gunners go into the game as overwhelming favorites given their recent form, but historically this type of fixture could be a problem for them. This clash therefore represents a true test of their title credentials.
Arteta’s first performance revealed
Xhaka will no doubt use the insight he gained working with Arteta to take on the Spaniard when Sunderland visit this weekend. The Swiss midfielder praised his former manager ahead of their next encounter, recalling his first impression on the training ground when he took over in 2019.
“I’ll never forget the first day Mikel joined,” Xhaka told The Athletic. “There was a big room in the training area, and there were some chairs in there, but the chairs were everywhere, and it was chaos. He took all the people who were working in the building into this room and said, ‘Guys, this is what it looks like from the outside. It’s chaos.’
“So everyone brought their chairs and put them in the right places, and he said, ‘I want this to happen every day.’ You might think, ‘Wow,’ but he’s already started using these standards from day one. After that, he set the standard for our mentality, training, pre-training, activation and recovery. He brought in people who did a great job. It was incredible to work with him because he saw football from a different perspective. ”
Record-breaking Hincapie
Arsenal’s defensive options have been significantly strengthened, with Piero Hincapje having performed outstandingly since joining on loan from Bayer Leverkusen in the summer, which includes a £45m buy option. The defender broke a 10-year record in Prague by becoming Arsenal’s first player to face at least eight European games in the past 10 seasons and win them all.
Miguel Ángel Ramírez, who gave him his professional debut at Independiente del Valle, will not be surprised by this result. “He was beating GPS data every day,” Ramirez told Sky Sports of Hincapie, who was 17 at the time and is now 23. “Piero was more prepared. Physically great, a beast, far better than any professional player in the first team. He was really impressive technically and tactically.”
With Riccardo Calafioli establishing himself at left-back and Miles Lewis-Skelly also competing for minutes, Arteta faces a welcome selection dilemma as the national team enters the Christmas period and competition intensifies.
