The performance of Viktor Gyokeres, who scored his 12th and 13th goals of the season, dominated Mikel Arteta’s post-match press conference on Saturday.
The boss met the media to discuss the game’s talking points from our 3-0 win, and was also asked about Kai Havertz, our nine-point lead in the table, and whether he will watch Liverpool v Manchester City tomorrow.
Here’s a full transcript…
On his reaction to the performance…
Very, very happy obviously with the win, with big parts of the performance, with the clean sheet as well, because it’s a really tough opponent. They’re really good at what they do, really good at breaking play, playing to the last line, breaking your press, holding the ball, and it’s very difficult to get sequences with threat and momentum consecutively. But we knew that, I think the first goal really helped to unlock that kind of phase, and then again, the finishers, they came on the pitch and immediately they had a huge impact.
On Viktor Gyokeres getting eight goal contributions in as many games…
Yes, and I think the way he came in, he was ready straight away. And when he got the line-up and he wasn’t in, everybody reacted in such a way. Because we know, we’re experiencing it every three days, how important the finishers are, the impact that they are having on the team, the results, and where we are at the moment, so I’m very happy.
On if he was expecting us to score from outside of the box…
Again, it’s a situation that you get with time and space. If the space is not in one place, it will be somewhere else. But yeah, as well, there were three really good shots, and Zubi’s is a special one as well. He’s contributing now to the team in a way that probably we didn’t expect that much, but he really has an intuition and quality to deliver those moments in and around the box.
On Gyokeres’ resilience and mental strength…
Well, the type of character that we expected, and obviously when you put that shirt on, it comes with a lot of responsibility and huge expectations, and you need to live with that. And in your journey here, you’re going to have moments where it goes really well and others that are going to be tough. Because, as well, you have an opponent that plays a part and he makes it really difficult for you. But I love his character, the way he approaches every single day and the fact that he’s so focused on the present, what he has to do, and he has a genuine will to help the team in whatever role he has.
On if anything has changed for Viktor and the team…
Well, obviously, he came on in moments, as well, when the game probably was a little bit more open. Today he had more company, as well, in and around him. It depends on the opponent, it depends on the context, but for me, what really makes a difference is the consistency that he’s shown every single day, to practise, to train, to understand better his team-mates, his relationships, to speak up and demand the kind of movement and balls and deliveries that he wants, as well. And then he needs to do what he’s done today, as well, really, really well.
On Viktor’s character…
Yeah, with Viktor, when you look at him, it’s very difficult to understand his emotion because he looks straight at you and you don’t really know, but he doesn’t seem too affected by whether there are really highs or lows and that’s what we need, the stability. He’s very demanding of himself, he’s constantly trying to improve and that’s really, really good.
On if the boss has done anything one-on-one to help Viktor’s confidence…
That’s the magic word, I think. When you feel confident, when you feel important, when you feel at your best, that’s when you can really take your game to the highest level. We all try, the first one, the teammates, but all the staff, obviously, really behind him in every moment to try to help him, to try to support him, and he’s delivering and he’s in a really good moment now.
On Kai Havertz playing deeper in midfield…
Well, I suppose with the kind of game that we expected as well and the way they play and the type of threat that we wanted to create as well with him and Gabby in and around the three central defenders. So, yeah, something as well that we have to use because we have very different qualities from Kai to Martin or to Ebs or another attacking midfielder.
On if he’ll be watching Liverpool’s game with Manchester City…
Yes, I’m going to have a beautiful dinner tonight. Tomorrow, I start to prepare Brentford because it’s going to be a really tough one and, in the meantime, for sure, I will be watching a big, big game.
On what it means to have a nine-point gap at the top…
Nothing, we still have to win so many games to achieve what we want. So, there’s no focus on that, that’s something else. We’ve done our job now, we’ve had what we have to do, so I assess that, try to improve it and get ready for Brentford.
On how much better we can get to try and win the Premier League…
I don’t know, depending on how better the other ones get. So, if the other ones get better, we need to get better. There is an opponent on the level in the Premier League, honestly, Sunderland, they are a top side and make it so hard for you, and that’s the level. If they raise it, you have to raise it again and try to find those margins to win, but the differences are not that big.
Read more Report: Arsenal 3-0 Sunderland
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