LISBON, Portugal — This is what it looks like when great margins go your way. No matter what the critics say, armory It has long been decided that pragmatism is the best path to glory this season and manager Mikel Arteta now has fresh evidence to remind his players that it can succeed.
“The demand of August is win and win and win and win,” he explained. “And if you don’t win, ‘It’s a disaster’, and ‘It’s not enough’, and if you don’t win four trophies, ‘What are we doing?'”
“So that’s OK, but they need some perspective, especially from me, a big reminder of what we are as a team and the things that have brought us here. Take it, live in the present, do your best and see what happens.”
– Madrid say they can overcome Bayern after a poor first leg. Are they right?
– UCL recap: Bayern beats Madrid, Havertz late winner for Arsenal
– Tracking Europe’s top football leagues: title race, UCL, relegation
kai havertzStoppage-time winner gives Gunners one win 1-0 But Sporting CP and strict control over them uefa champions league Quarterfinal tie. The match-winning moment turned a passable night into a very promising one. For long periods, Arsenal were unable to create anything noteworthy apart from their usual set-piece threat.
It was a disappointing, disjointed attacking performance in the form of a measured European performance.
David Raya Their best player was; His best defense was his first: a touch of fingers to divert Maximiliano AraújoA sixth-minute effort over the crossbar. He made five saves in total, three of which came in the minutes before Havertz’s goal.
Afterwards, Havertz described Raya as “for me, in the last two seasons, the best keeper in the world”. he can’t go in spain team ahead unai simon these days, but there is no doubt that he is extremely important to Arsenal.
“He is extraordinary, fantastic, incredible,” Arteta said. “I don’t know the adjective, the right one. And with that, that’s enough. We’re very happy to have him.”
decision to play Kepa Arrizabalaga — badly at fault Carabao Cup Final – for Arsenal’s last two defeats Manchester City And southampton After this it looks even more suspicious.
Raya set the stage for a smash-and-grab, allowing “finishers” to eliminate. Arteta renamed his impact substitute role a while back and he did it to perfection here: gabriel martinelli Played a defense-splitting pass to Havertz, who controlled the ball and finished expertly.
The Gunners have had 38 goal involvements from substitute players this season, more than any team in Europe’s top five leagues. And Martinelli combined with Havertz to score his fourth Champions League goal, assisted by a substitute, the most goals scored by any side in the competition.
“The story of the season: the finishers come when the most important part of the game is about to happen and they made the difference in winning it,” Arteta said.
“I think it’s a reflection of the chemistry that’s there in the team. And while respecting your role and my decision within the day, it’s not easy at times to leave certain players on the bench at the beginning.
“It’s natural, it’s natural. They love each other so much that they do it for the team. And when you play with that attitude and that desire, these things can happen.”
And with that, suddenly the mood changes. A team whose mentality and stamina have been doubted as their chances of four trophies have been halved to two with defeat in England’s domestic cup competitions could point to a solid answer.
Everything at Arsenal now is geared towards winning silverware in these final few weeks, and so in that context, only their preparation for a first Champions League win will appear timely. Sporting has won 17 consecutive home matches and this team is so talented that they have a chance to overturn the one-goal deficit in London next week.
But they are also in sixth place Portuguese Primeira Liga Now and in its first quarter-final since 1983, when the Champions League was known as the European Cup.
It was broadly similar – albeit better – to the left back’s performance in the previous round, when Havertz again attacked late on to earn a 1-1 draw But bayer leverkusenCurrently sixth best team Germany‘S Bundesliga.
Semifinal tie likely against barcelona Or Atletico Madrid – or, for that matter, the final against the defending champions Paris Saint Germain and, perhaps Bayern Munich – Will test Arsenal’s fine-margin playing style to its limits. But when Arsenal are the best version of themselves, they are extraordinary. And that seems to have been the message internally after a string of defeats in recent times.
“Yesterday I talked about the identity and the things I wanted to see on that pitch. It definitely happened – there was a change,” Arteta said.
“Especially the things that depend on us and that have nothing to do with quality or execution. Those are the things that got us here. The rest, we have it, there will be moments where it will be better or not as efficient, but those things, if we maintain them, we have a bigger chance.”
