Arteta on Arsenal carabao Cup exit after 2-0 Newcastle loss
05/02/2024
St james' Park, Newcastle, Uk
05/02/2024
St james' Park, Newcastle, Uk
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SportsTranscript
00:00I don't know if you have a question, raise your hand and we'll come to you if you're
00:27ready.
00:28Well, we had so many expectations obviously to believe that we could turn it around.
00:33We needed to generate momentum, especially in the first half.
00:36The game started in the first action almost with them scoring and then the goal being
00:43denied.
00:44Then we had the moment, two big moments with Martin.
00:47We didn't capitalise the next action, they scored the goal and obviously the game shifted.
00:52And then you need to stay cool, to score a goal as early as possible.
00:57We didn't manage to do that in the first half even though we had another big chance.
01:01In the second half then we started to struggle as the game went by.
01:05We didn't generate enough situation, establish ourselves in the finals enough.
01:12The game started to get away from us.
01:14Have Newcastle become one of your toughest opponents in English football now?
01:18Yeah, it's a tough opponent, yeah.
01:22You mentioned that Verdugo chance, it did feel like that had gone in and scored a 2-1
01:28in a very different game.
01:29Has it shown how fine margins are for Arsenal this season?
01:32Yeah, but when you want to win cup finals, you want to win trophies, at the end those
01:37are hard.
01:38They've been really effective in the box in the last two games that we've played against
01:41them and we haven't.
01:43Overall, that was the main difference.
01:45It's true that today we've been a bit more unsettled, especially when the game became
01:50more chaotic or when they were very direct with their play.
01:53Normally we are much more composed, today we lacked a bit of that and the game went
01:59away from us.
02:00Can I just ask for an update on Gabriel Martino who came off?
02:03Yeah, he felt something, I think it was his hamstring and he wasn't comfortable to continue
02:08so we'll have to do an MRI scan tomorrow to see the extent of the injury.
02:13Mikel, I think that's 11 games in 36 days you've had now since the start of this year.
02:19Was tonight partly just an exhaustion from that period and how important is the break
02:25that you've got now and the chance to go away?
02:27I wouldn't like, especially when we lose a game, because physically we were tired.
02:32We played so many games, we played so many games every three days and we knew that that
02:36was going to be a really high intensity one.
02:39Emotionally as well, it was a very different game.
02:42We needed to get there, to believe right until the end that we could do it and before that
02:48was expected, the game got away from us.
02:52Mikel, how much does it feel like an opportunity missed to get to a cup final?
02:58Well yeah, if you're in a semi-final and you don't get to the final, very much.
03:03Two trophies left to play for now, how much is going out here?
03:09Have you doubled your efforts in the recent season?
03:15Yeah, we need to swallow this one, it's a tough one.
03:18We had a lot of expectations, we knew the difficulty of the task because of the result
03:22that we brought from London, but there's nothing we can do right now.
03:27What we could do is, it was on the pitch a few minutes ago, now we have to look forward.
03:35First of all, I think this is going to be a painful one, and while we are in Dubai,
03:39recharge and go again because we still have a lot to play.
03:42Did you lose this at the first leg?
03:44Sorry?
03:45Did you lose this time at the first leg?
03:47Well, we made it really difficult, certainly for ourselves.
03:51Hi, Mikel.
03:52Defensively, your team today were characteristically sloppy in some moments
03:57and some mistakes that we don't usually see from them.
04:00As a manager, what do you put that down to?
04:05I mean, errors are part of football and we've been super consistent and really composed
04:10and today we gave them hope just by putting the ball long into our last line.
04:14And when we did that, we always looked vulnerable because we allowed them to run
04:20from this situation and they are really a dangerous team when they are able to do that.
04:24But certainly they don't want to do that, so what can I say?
04:28Were you a bit surprised by how Nicaso set up the five defenders?
04:32No.
04:35Finally, to Issa.
04:38Hi, Mika.
04:39From the first leg, Alexander Issa, obviously in the performance there and tonight,
04:42he again was on songbob.
04:44The kind of task was up for Salih, but I'm glad we were able to face off too hard
04:47because they did.
04:50Damn it.
04:51I know he has to evaluate opposition play, but it's clear that he had two actions to finish
04:55and you know what happened.
04:58OK, everyone. Thanks very much.