Arteta concentrated solely on what ‘we can manage’ after Arsenal regains top position
Mikel Arteta maintains that Arsenal is concentrating exclusively on what “we can manage” after taking back first position in the Premier League from Manchester City.
The Gunners secured their place atop the standings for Christmas Day after Viktor Gyokeres’ penalty provided a slim 1-0 win over Everton.
Arsenal had momentarily relinquished the top spot, with Pep Guardiola’s City surpassing them following their 3-0 victory against West Ham earlier that Saturday.
However, Arteta was firm that his players were undistracted by happenings at the Etihad Stadium before they took the field at Hill Dickinson Stadium later that day.
“We are not focused on that,” he stated. “The only aspect we can manage is our performance and results, and we are aware of the length and difficulty of this league. That’s all there is to it. Enjoy every day. Do your best and see what comes from it.
“(We are) very pleased to achieve a win here. It’s a truly challenging venue to visit.
Bringing all three points back to N5pic.twitter.com/yJZTdyozYb
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) December 20, 2025
“In the first half, there were some instances where we were quite dominant, but not truly dangerous.
“We netted the goal. In the second half, we had three significant open chances that, if you want to feel more at ease toward the end, you need to convert in the Premier League.
“You ought to appreciate the process of winning, and that will include tough times, challenging moments, and rewarding moments. That’s all part of the effort and how close we are to winning, which is why we must relish it and take it match by match.”
On the other hand, this marks consecutive defeats for Everton, who were also outplayed 2-0 by Chelsea at Stamford Bridge last weekend.
The Toffees managed only one shot on target from a lowly xG of 0.2, while they failed to record a single attempt during the first half of a home Premier League match for just the second time in history (since 2003-04).
“You can perform as well as you wish and execute positive plays, but we need to score goals,” lamented manager David Moyes. “We haven’t found the back of the net in the last two games, which is the element that’s been lacking.
“We executed many good actions; the players’ commitment, the morale. Everything you could hope for from them, they delivered tonight. It was just a lack of quality or failing to challenge Arsenal more effectively. Arsenal has allowed very few chances, and we simply didn’t create enough opportunities this evening.
“I believe we began the match positively. I don’t think we were under significant pressure until the penalty kick. After that penalty, we were a bit shaken.
“In the second half, we needed to make the game more open; we had to be more aggressive than we had been. We tried to push forward more quickly, but it also permitted Arsenal to execute one or two exceptional passing sequences.
“I felt we persevered, never surrendered, and were always in contention right until the end. Kudos to the players.”
Published: 2025-12-21 00:02:00
source: www.soccernews.com
