Mikel Arteta has admitted the Premier League is not as interesting as other leagues in Europe, but that won’t change unless tweaks are made to the rules.
Mikel Arteta calls for changes to the Premier League, wants it to be more entertaining (Image: Getty Images)
Mikel Arteta has admitted fans who want to watch entertaining football need to look elsewhere, and says the Premier League needs to change its rules if it wants to bring back eye-catching matches.
The Arsenal manager had to criticize his team’s approach, particularly their reliance on set-pieces. They proved to be very effective, with Sunday’s win over Chelsea taking the north Londoners’ tally of goals from dead-ball situations to 16 this season.
This allowed them to build a five-point lead at the top of the table, but opinions are divided, with some saying that the Premier League has become less fun as a result of the increased importance of set pieces.
Liverpool manager Arne Slott has said other European leagues offer more entertainment than England’s top flight, something Arteta agrees with, apart from the use of set-pieces, but that won’t change unless the rules are tweaked.
The Arsenal manager said: “We want to play with three extra players in our half to create beautiful football, and we always want to play against free players. If you want to see that football, you have to go to another country. In the Premier League, that hasn’t happened in the last two or three seasons.”
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“Unless we change the rules, it’s going to be a different game, because that’s how the game evolves. Four years ago it was a completely different game.”
Arteta did not insist on which rules the Premier League needs to change to make it more entertaining. Arsenal’s manager admits that his team has been able to stop opponents in open play due to the rise of man-to-man defending rather than zone defending. Conversely, Everton manager David Moyes wants referees to be tougher on the grabbing and wrestling that has become common in the penalty area.
Reliance on set-pieces is less criticized by observers (Image: Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
Arsenal are looking to stay ahead of Manchester City in the title race, but Pep Guardiola believes the Gunners can’t be seen as lesser champions just because their style isn’t to everyone’s taste.
“The manager is happy and I’m sure the players are very happy,” he said. “And if you ask all Arsenal fans, I’m sure they’ll say, ‘Don’t change our set-pieces for a second. They have that feeling when it comes to set-pieces, Wow, we’re going to score. I’m sure every team wants to create that atmosphere.
“So, is it fun or not? Probably (I don’t agree with) people who say, ‘No, the league isn’t good this season, the winners aren’t good.’ I don’t agree.”
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