Every word from Arteta’s pre-Man United presser | Press conference | News

We return to Emirates Stadium on Sunday to face Manchester United and ahead of the contest, Mikel Arteta has been speaking to the press at the Sobha Realty Training Centre.

The boss has been giving an update on his squad, facing Michael Carrick’s side and much more.

Read everything below, with a video of the full press conference to follow!

On if Calafiori and Hincapie are ready for Saturday: 
We still have another training session, so we’ll see tomorrow, after that, to assess everybody and make a decision, first of all, in the squad.  

On if there are any fresh injury worries: 
No, after Inter we had no issues reported.  

On the selection headache with Jesus, Gyokeres and Havertz available: 
Yes, we were waiting for that and with the amount of games that are coming up, they’re all going to have opportunities and minutes, obviously, so it’s great to have them back and especially to have them in good form. 

On how helpful it is for Gyokeres to have Havertz and Jesus back: 
Well he started without a pre-season and a lot of minutes and a lot of responsibility on him. Now the fact that we have other options as well, I think it’s something really positive, especially for the squad, and you could see the other day, Gabi [Jesus] scoring two goals, Viktor coming on and making an impact to win the game. 

On the difficulty of facing United under Michael Carrick: 
Well, obviously, Michael coming in will bring new ideas. Always, the intensity rises up. You could see that in the Manchester derby, the kind of behaviours and the game that they played, so we will expect a really tough match and we’ll adapt to that for sure. But we are at home and we know how important that game is for us. 

On Nwaneri: 
I think the deal is quite close. It’s something that we constantly have to be monitoring. I think the talented young players that we have need minutes, and in this case, Ethan wasn’t having enough minutes, and the last thing that we want is to cut his development because he’s such a talent and someone who lives and breathes football; that’s his life. After having a discussion with him, with his father, the agent and the club, we decided that the best thing to do was to leave and go on loan, and then we have to pick the right place, and having all the options, understand the experience that we had in Marseille as well with [William Saliba], the fact that Roberto [De Zerbi] is there and he’s an incredible developer of young talent and he’s a really courageous manager in the way he plays, the way he plays with young talent as well and he has a big track record about that, and I think it fits the way of playing for the qualities that we want to see for Ethan. So it’s going to be a great experience for him. 

On our rivalry with United: 
You guys sell it so well, especially in Spain, because you could see the tension and the rivalry and those individual battles that were there as well that make the game really, really special. So, obviously, two massive clubs that have been fighting at the highest level for so many years and we want to try to have the best possible game to win it. 

On if there are memories against them that stand out: 
I don’t know, there are a lot, but obviously just before kick-off as well, a lot of the things that were going on and that’s rising up the tension and then obviously the atmosphere in the stadium. But yeah, some incredible players as well in that era as well that have been absolute legends of this league, so that’s what makes it so exciting. 

on how different United will be now Carrick is in charge:
We don’t know. Every game is different. At the end, the individuals are the ones that make the difference or the ones that make the game in a certain way and we’re going to try to be ourselves, be very dominant like we always want to be, impose the game that we want to play and regardless of what they want to do, we want to take the game in the areas that are very good for us.

on if Gyokeres can show his best form in front of goal now:
It’s a lot of things that have to happen to consistently be able to produce those performances and numbers but we have different relationships around him as well because Kai is a player that can play in two attacking midfield positions, so we can vary in relation to the opponent, their behaviour and the game that we want to play, so that’s very good.

on if it’s easier to settle in as a manager when you’ve already played for a club:
I don’t know. First of all, it’s the feeling that I have towards the club because I played here, and that’s unique, that brings something extra. The fact that you know a lot of people, in my opinion, is something very beneficial, and understanding the history of the club from the inside, and then you have to acclimatise and adapt to the circumstances and then start your job.

on breaking down low blocks:
Well, it’s one of the weapons that is necessary because a lot of teams are doing that but as well, we can see more and more the man-to-man game that is conquering not only the Premier League but Europe I think as well. So, you need to dominate all the phases in the game if you want to have the chance to win major trophies.

on how different setting up for a European game is to a domestic one:
It is very different. First of all, because the information and the time that you have to prepare those games and when you don’t know them that much, it is a bit different. Then the rules change a little bit in the way the games are managed as well and there is always an element of you are in or out, you need a point, you don’t. So, the results as well and how teams behave can change. But, so far it has been good.

on where Havertz is in his rehab
Well, he is very close. Obviously, he has been out for a long time, almost a year, for different reasons, and now we have to be very smart in the manner that we manage that load, the minutes, and I am sure that in the next few weeks, he is going to play in minutes. I cannot tell you which competition because that will depend as well on the game context, and it is a context that is positive to throw him in or not, with his qualities. It is great that we have him. We can use him in different positions, we will see him in different positions, and we are really happy to have him.

on the importance of having Havertz firing at the end of the season:
Yes, because after a long-term injury it is not only the period that you come in, it is what happens in the next six to eight weeks, and we want to maintain that and manage that really well so that we can creep it up, as you said, when all the big, big games are coming up and we have to make sure that everybody is in the right mind and physically at the highest level.

on how supporters can calm their nerves:
It is not about calming. It is about continuing to do what we are doing really well and try to evolve every single day to be better. So, from their side, it is continuing to do what they do in the stadium; create more energy, more positiveness around the games in each action, and if we do that and we create that kind of a scenario, we are going to make it more and more difficult to the opponent, and that is going to help us to win more games.

on Pep Guardiola calling us the best team in the world:
I don’t know. I think we are the team that wants to be constantly better, that we’re doing a lot of things right, but we are far from perfect, and our only aim is to sustain the level that we are doing, but especially in certain areas, try to improve again.

on if the United game will be won and lost on transition:
It is one of the areas. I mean, they are so good in a lot of departments. It is clear that when that team has a space to run in a certain place to activate or run, they become lethal. You saw that a few days ago in Manchester. They have a lot of attributes to cause you problems. But as well, like every team, they have their weaknesses as well.

on if they’re the best in the league at transitions:
I don’t know. Historically, there has always been something very linked to that. And the profile of players that they always have and certain individuals that are so good at activating those spaces as well. I don’t know the stats exactly, but for sure, they are one of the best.

on how much the balance of the team has been impacted by missing Calafiori:
We are trying to adapt to the qualities of our players and certain players give us more dynamism and more options in terms of the spaces that they can occupy and where they are comfortable and how they can link between them. And others are probably more static and more fixed and more positional. And Riccardo’s quality is that he can be very fluent in many spaces.

on Saka’s recent goalscoring record:
That’s a possibility, always, but the impact that he has in games around all the attacking processes for us and the attraction that he has in the points as well, opening up spaces for other players. We want him obviously to play, scoring and assisting in every match and that has to be the aim at the level that he has. So we keep working on that.

on if it’s difficult for Havertz to trust his body now:
I don’t think so because he’s a player that has an unbelievable track record and what happened, okay, it happened and you have to go through that in your career at least once. He’s gone through that period that has enabled him as well to learn more about the game, about his body and probably about how much he loves playing and how difficult it is in life when football is not a big part of that and he looks really, really hungry and I’m sure we’re going to see a very good version of Kai. 

on if he’s spoken to Nwaneri about his own loan spells in the past:
Yes, and not only me but a lot of players that have these kinds of situations and just understanding how he’s going to feel because when they talk about the opportunity and the clubs that are interested in you to go the first thing is excitement. You are willing to play, you speak to the manager, he’s very keen on you and you’re going to play at the weekend and you’re going to start a lot of games and this is all very good. But one day you have to go ‘okay, pack your bags, this is the flight tickets and you have to go to Marseille.’ Whoa, whoa, whoa. And that is fear, is insecurity, is getting out of a place that has been really comfortable for him around his family but then this is the thing at the end – you have to be thrown there, into the sharks in an incredible football culture and atmosphere and club and it’s going to make him so good.

on if it’s nice to hear Pep’s compliment about us being the best team in the world:
It’s always much better to hear positive things about your team and the work that you are doing but obviously that’s a big word especially because in my opinion to be related to that you have to win a lot of things and we haven’t but we certainly have the purpose to be the best version that we can be every single day and we’re not going to stop until we achieve that.

on if it’s difficult to leave Jesus out of the team now:
Well it’s exactly what you want from a striker, the same that Viktor did but at the end you have to pick what you think is the best team to start against a different opposition, a different context and then how you’re going to finish the game as well so tomorrow evening or the morning of the match we will decide.

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