The Football Faithful
·29 November 2024
The Football Faithful
·29 November 2024
Mikel Arteta has said the energy has been lifted at Arsenal following his side’s return to form.
Having gone four games without a win before the international break, Arsenal have returned with convincing victories over Nottingham Forest and Sporting Lisbon.
The Gunners thrashed previously unbeaten Sporting 5-1 in Portugal in the Champions League in midweek and Arteta has challenged his team to find those levels on a consistent basis. Arsenal travel to face West Ham in the Premier League on Saturday evening.
“Winning lifts the energy and the confidence up,” he said at his pre-match press conference.
“They were two big wins for us and now it’s about consistency and getting that momentum and taking it even further against a really good opponent tomorrow.
“It doesn’t matter what you did yesterday, it’s about the next day and the next performance and how you are able to sustain high levels of performance because of how competitive every opponent is and that is what we will try and do tomorrow.”
Martin Odegaard’s return to fitness has helped lift Arsenal and Arteta praised the way in which the club captain has hit the ground running after injury.
“With the way he prepares himself and how much work he put in with the physios and medical department to get in the best possible condition to face the period and importance of the season that we are in and to hit the ground running – he has been exceptional since the Chelsea game and he has been very consistent the last three games.
“Good players that are so consistent and so reliable that can take the game to a different level and make the players better around them, that’s a huge quality of Martin’s and he has been missed.”