Er...
There are certain things that I struggle with.
I'm a pretty straight person.
I've been raised in a way that for me, certain values are non-negotiable,
and I have to try to apply that within the club,
within the players and the staff.
What do you think, guys?
What do you think?
- What do you think? - Not good enough.
Not good enough!
What do you say? Laca, what did you say the other day,
how do we beat them?
Rythm.
Rythm, my ass!
Fucking soft!
Soft as fuck!
First of all, it's about the culture and the values that we represent.
For me, there are three main ones.
One is respect.
When you lose the ball, you run from,
you lose the ball and then,
you walk, run and finally sprint.
The other one is commitment.
Pressure! Pressure on the ball!
Ball goes here,
pressure and the ball goes here,
pressure on the ball.
And the other is passion.
I'm losing my voice again fucking shouting at you.
I don't have to do that, you are much better than that.
If one of those three don't exist,
you should not be anywhere near this football club.
And after that is a certain way of playing
and that way of playing, it's only for one reason: To win.
I want to see a fucking different team, guys.
You have 5 minutes!
5 minutes!
Your body language, your care, your attention, everything.
5 minutes.
When you love what you do, that is called passion.
We have to believe, we have to have energy.
Show these people how much you care.
Let's go for it.
Everton leave out a roar.
For Arsenal 3 defeats in 4 league matches now for Mikel Arteta.
Everton 2, Arsenal 1.
That's the first time with Arsenal,
you sort of think they're going to turn the corner
and then they go and produce a performance like that.
It's hard to sum it up.
Generally, I think everyone gave 70%.
We need good forwards, we need good forwards,
and we need Aubameyang to start stepping up
to what he was doing two years ago as well.
It was probably the worst performance of the season.
To throw Aubameyang on in the 85th minute,
it makes no sense, it's baffling.
For me, he was trying to send the message to Aubameyang saying,
"I'm in charge and we'll try to win the game without you."
But it completely backfired.
After a bad run of results,
the mood within the Arsenal camp is low.
Mikel Arteta's decisions are under scrutiny.
Afternoon, everybody.
I asked you last week about Aubameyang's form
and was it a concern to you?
You need him to really start scoring goals, don't you?
Is he lacking confidence?
Well, obviously when a player is not scoring, it's affecting his confidence,
affecting the mood and then probably the belief,
but don't accept the situation and feel sorry for yourself.
Gary Neville suggested that there was a risk
of your relationship with Aubameyang turning a little sour
because you left him out.
I don't know.
I have a very good relationship with my players.
Because if there's one thing that I have to understand
is that I would always do the best for the club and for the team.
Thanks, everybody.
Thank you.
You know what is happening?
Yeah.
And I want you to be prepared,
for what's going to happen.
Because that will explode.
Yeah.
After the defeat at Everton,
club captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was given leave
for an agreed trip back to France.
Today, he is late in reporting back.
Yes.
We need to clear this up, Mikel.
Who defends the space? And who comes to the centre forward?
The centre forward is for Laca
Well done guys, well done.
I was extremely happy
when he decided to extend his contract.
We agreed and we set some objectives
that we have to achieve together.
And I made some compromises of what I was happy to do
and what he could expect from me.
And I demand the same things to him.
And then whether we are consistent or not with what we decided
and what I wanted to install on day one.
If somebody...
doesn't do
or breaks some of the non-negotiables,
that's a really difficult point to get something back from it.
Auba returns to Colney.
But the club have made a decision
and are forcing him to train on his own.
Okay mate, we're going to warm up here,
then we'll take it down the far end.
- Start with some technical work... - Okay.
And then we'll progress through
and we'll try and do some conditioning work, mainly with the ball,
- with response to the ball. - Okay.
What has happened with Auba yesterday?
He went to Paris
and then came home.
Came home, the boss wanted him back like...
One day before?
I think, yeah, one day before he came back,
the next day, and then was late for training.
And skip.
Push out to the top yellow.
He had permission to go there, something about his mum.
He had to go see his mum.
And then, yeah, he didn't get back in time.
He didn't listen to him and do the correct thing.
The boss had balls.
Yeah, the boss had balls.
Are you coming back?
I'm here, brother.
I'm training every day, but not with you guys.
Until?
- Until some day. - You need a time frame.
Plus they asked me if, like,
I wanted to speak with them again.
Off you go, someone will pass on the message. You know me.
- All right, catch you later. - See you later.
Matchday
and Mikel has to let the outside world know
the club's captain has been suspended.
Leaving out Aubameyang is a big call,
and one that Auba does not agree with.
Let's go to the Emirates next,
where actually an absentee is the main story here. John South all.
Yes, and not for the first time
you have to say that Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang,
the centre of attention for all the wrong reasons,
has been left out due to a disciplinary breach.
Arteta is trying to put his footprint
over the culture of the football club
and say "the fabric of this football club runs the way I say it runs."
That's what I call a bold move.
The fact that he's not on the bench now, I don't think that's a good sign.
The two of them have to really sit down
and figure out what they want from this team.
On the one hand, you know, if he's broken rules, fair play.
But I think if we lose today, it's going to get harder and harder.
Come on!
- Come on, guys. - Boys, hurry!
Sit down guys, please.
Guys...
What is more important, guys?
The journey...
Or the destination? Tell me.
Laca, what is more important for you, the journey or the destination?
Destination.
You know what we have to really care about?
And the most beautiful thing is the company.
Neither the journey or that.
And I am so grateful guys to have you here,
all of you here,
because you have one special thing
that it has to be our core that you...
I don't know how as a group you have the capacity to transmit energy.
So when you go out there today, guys, you have to lift them up
because after two defeats, it's going to be necessary.
But you've done it.
Only passion, determination and passion
and show these people how much you care.
And transmit it again.
And go out there and play forward and attack them
and play with courage and belief and fucking win this game.
With Aubameyang out,
his good friend, Alexandre Lacazette, is awarded the captain's armband.
It is crucial, isn't it, that Arsenal get three points today.
Come on!
Hooked into Tell a. White should deal with it.
He's been dispossessed.
It's a bit uncomfortable for Arsenal there.
Southampton's press making it awkward.
Tella's onto it.
Options either side, might go for a goal himself.
That's a let-off for Arsenal.
Arteta's up on his feet now,
trying to inject a bit more energy to the game.
Right now Ramsdale is the Arsenal player with the most touches
and he's under pressure. Oh!
They're just about out from the back.
Saka...
Tomiyasu has kept going forward.
Lacazette! Oh what a finish!
That is simply wonderful from Arsenal.
What a counter attack from beginning to end.
A really terrific goal!
Arsenal scored their first shot on target
and 6 minutes later...
they double their lead.
Odegaard was simply determined to get to the ball
and he scores a rare headed goal.
And Arsenal in control at the break.
Half time, Arsenal 2, Southampton nil.
Okay, guys, there are teams that jump for fun.
Fullback are going against our fullback.
To play good, we have to reset.
So when the ball is rolling, I have to be ready.
My movement has to be ready.
So when the ball is right, I'm set, I can play the ball.
I attract them and Gabi and Bukayo ready.
By ready means like this,
ready means no off-side,
looking at the line and say, put me fucking through.
We're quicker than them.
We are going to destroy them there.
The second half kicks off at Emirates Stadium.
Arsenal on top by 2 goals to nil.
Partey.
Saka who makes room for the shot.
So close.
Arsenal control the game in the second half.
And add another goal.
And it's 3 nil to Arsenal.
Gabriel adds his name to the score sheet,
he finally has his goal.
Relief for Mikel Arteta,
but no respite.
Big game coming up against West Ham here.
Will your captain Aubameyang be available for that one?
Let's see, I want to talk about the game today.
Can you not talk about what happened though with...
I can talk about the game.
And I want to focus on the game
because these boys deserve to be talking about the game.
But it is a big issue, you have to accept that.
The fact that your captain didn't play today
and you disciplined him.
I said, how unfortunate.
It is a situation that applies to everybody.
Can he stay as captain after this latest breach?
Let's talk about the game. Thank you so much.
When will you talk about Aubameyang then?
I already have. I don't have anything else to say.
- Okay, we'll let you go. - Thank you.
Guys, one second.
Within the first 15 minutes, when we suffer...
We had a difficult spell and we had to hang in there.
And then your reaction, your commitment and your energy
to play the game with passion.
You in play in certain moments, guys, to a top, top, top level.
Now we have to extend that throughout the minutes
because when you do that you are fucking difficult to play and to win against.
Stick together, humble and we go to the next one and we go.
The win moves Arsenal up into 6,
just 1 point behind fourth placed West Ham,
their next opponents.
Three goals and a clean sheet is a degree of vindication for Mikel
and the management of his squad.
Good.
Guys! Now you are warm.
So every time somebody doesn't give the perfect ball,
we play the ball back.
Everything has to be perfect. Ready?
Let's go.
What's Mikel like?
He's very intense and he is very demanding.
And I think you've got to rise that or if you don't you're moved on.
Tactically, it's crazy how good he is.
I've never seen the game like this before.
Here, you are in total control.
Good.
I'm really happy with Mikel. He's definitely helped me.
Growing up watching Arsenal, I see them get a few red cards.
So I knew he was, you know, he can be very... sometimes.
Have more quality on the passes, guys! If not, we lose the ball.
I want the pressure. I want to feel the pressure.
That's why I'm a professional footballer.
I think that's what keeps everyone on their toes
is that he can be quite ruthless with that but that's important.
Pah, let's go. Let's pick it up now. Good passes. Yes.
Commit as well.
Keep doing the pass!
How the Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang issue will be resolved
is still unclear.
But with 24 hours before their next match,
Mikel calls a team meeting to bring some clarity to the situation.
Okay. I have to announce you something.
Er...
Following the last disciplinary issue that we had with Auba
and the consequences that I decided to take not to involve him in the game,
I thought carefully, myself and the club.
What was the next step?
And we have decided as a club that he is no longer our captain.
So you should know that.
The other decision is that for now,
he's not involved in the squad.
I will make decisions further along the line.
We keep going as we are as a group right now,
and we have to set ourselves
even bigger aims and bigger standards.
The club and myself, we are not going to accept any behaviour like this.
And what we are building goes completely against any behaviour like that.
So we have to have any meaning to changing our culture
and making sure that we become a different club and team.
We have to stand to those words clearly in every actions with anybody.
And this is the message that I have to send you.
I don't like the timing, but I had to clear that up with you guys.
Now, please focus on the game tomorrow, okay? Thank you.
Guys, good morning. Preparation, all here in this gym
or outside at 5 past, 5 past 12 on pitch 5. Here we go!
Hi everybody. We'll start, please, with Andy from "Premier League".
Just one place to start, of course,
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
I wonder if you could elaborate further on the statement released by the club.
I don't have much more to say.
I think it's a really clear statement from the club.
It's a decision that we have made following the incident,
the last incident that we have with the player.
And this is where we stand.
Is it a case of...
Obviously because you're a young manager, first job,
you're sort of looking to establish your authority?
Or is that not the case either?
I don't establish my authority
by being dictatorial or trying to be ruthless.
But is there a danger of this situation becoming a distraction?
I'm sorry, but I'm going to speak that for everybody that works for the club,
the first one myself.
And the day I don't do that I go through that door
and I do something else.
So it's as clear as that.
To be successful,
you are passionate about something
and you want to represent a club of this size with its history
and that's a minimum standard that you did.
I'm not going to ask them to put the ball in the top corner
every time they hit that ball.
But I will ask them to do the right things every single day for this club,
that's for sure, Mark.
Thanks, Mikel.
Thanks, everybody.
Thank you.
Well done.
Strong. It's good when you make a strong decision.
You stand behind it.
Thank you. See you.
See you guys in minute.
They insisted quite a lot, yeah?
We knew they would.
I don't think we give them any big highlights.
Mark was making a fair point
saying "Are you trying to show your authority?"
That's why I said "Listen, it's not about that"
especially in this case.
And that's the problem, what you read.
The truth is, we clarify everything, but you can't do it.
That's why I have everything documented
with the dates, the times,
the conversation, how it happened, why it happened...
because if one day,
if one day it's needed.
Yeah, you've got it. There you go.
He's been late apart from all the issues many times.
The club has got a tradition.
When you get paid that much money...
The decision to temporarily exclude Aubameyang
has obvious football ramifications,
but there are also legal issues to deal with.
Okay?
Very neat, I like that. Very neat. Very neat.
Tidy desk, tidy mind.
Edu Gaspar is the technical director
and he's joined by Richard Garlick,
director of football operations,
on a call to a club lawyer.
Hi.
We had a conversation with Mikel and Tim,
Edu, myself and Vinai
about the situation with Aubameyang.
Mikel understood
the concerns regarding him not training with the group.
What's the player's current situation?
We never know.
- All right. - It is tough to understand
because my communication is straight away with the agents.
I was saying to Vinai you're quite on a back foot.
You know, we can't continue down this route
of him being excluded from training until the end of the season.
I completely agree.
So was that only about
coming back late going to France, all that stuff,
or was there other stuff happening?
I mean, do we have a bank of evidence there
that justified
- that temporary sort of agreement? - Yeah.
Mikel's got a file. It's a catalogue of misdemeanours that he's had,
- which has culminated in this. - Right.
Yeah, it's not perfect.
No, I agree.
This is a short-term solution.
And with this, a longer-term decision that needs to be made.
Yeah, I think we just need some prep for that decision.
Okay. Yeah, we all agree on that.
- Okay. Thanks. Bye. - All right. Bye.
All right, fine.
Is it easy to support Mikel in this decision?
No.
Of course it's not
because how many goals
Aubameyang scored for seasons for the club?
How much the fans like Aubameyang?
How much the players like him to be around?
Doesn't matter if it's the captain, if it's someone from the academy,
if it's a boy, you know, who is just starting the first team.
Everybody has to be treated the same.
And if you're not doing what we believe,
what is important for the club,
we have to act. We have to act.
And some decisions are strong and difficult to make.
But you have to make them.
Edu Gaspar became Arsenal's technical director in July 2019.
One of Edu's key responsibilities is finding new players
to improve the first team squad.
It's a big, big, big responsibility
to find a player, a process to find the right player.
Talking to the finance, talk to legal, talk internally, talk to Mikel,
talk to the board.
You know, I started to be... how do you call...? Really tired.
I lose a little bit of hair.
So, yeah, this is me.
I like to really go for it. Yeah.
Ben, Gabi and Kieran all pink, please.
Gabi?
When the ball gets there, go like the clappers.
You have to get there
and if the ball is there, and Granit has gone
on your back just that and straight away.
As well as sourcing new players for the first team,
Edu has a strong working relationship with the current squad,
particularly fellow Brazilian Gabriel Martinelli,
who joined Arsenal aged just 18 years old.
I grew up in Guarulhos,
in a poor neighbourhood with my parents.
When I was young, I didn't have money.
They always say "Don't spend a lot of money."
They're always on my foot,
like "Oh be careful, be careful."
But I don't care about the money.
I just want to play football.
My parents can take care of the money.
Hi Edu.
- How are things? - All right.
- All good? - All good.
- Dad is here. - He is?
- He came, just like that. - Did he really?
He likes to be there in Brazil, in the sun,
with his friends playing cards.
But he needs to know that it's good for you to be here for a bit.
But cool. And your mother?
- She's good. She's in Brazil. - She is?
She bought a house there as well.
She needs to stay there to sort the house.
Do you need anything? Everything's good? Are you feeling well? All good?
All good.
- I'm better already. - All right then.
- Send hugs to the family. - All right I'll send. All right.
When Martinelli first moved to the UK,
his parents came to help their young son settle in.
Yeah, to be fair it was quite tough
because in Brazil
I didn't learn English.
And my family was so important for me.
They always give me some good advice.
If you want to be a top player,
if you don't give everything today, you can't prove...
Like you are here and if you're training at 90%,
you cannot reach, you know.
But if you're training at 100%, you can go to another level.
He's training well, Gabi.
So sharp. So fast.
So aggressive.
Edu, I love him.
Honestly, I love him.
He just, well, he just needs time, that's all.
And as a person, he's a top boy.
He is a great kid, trains everyday like it's his last day on Earth.
He's just...
He's a diamond, he really is.
The passion that we have in Brazil is amazing.
You know, how we live football in Brazil is something really special
because we say in Brazil, I learn a lot about that.
You go to the fields, I'm hungry and the other one is hungry
but they have just one plate to eat.
Who is going to eat, me or you?
No, I'm going to eat.
Controversy abounds at the Emirates Stadium.
There is no Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang again.
All the talk around Arsenal has been about Aubameyang
being stripped of the captaincy.
Arsenal! Arsenal!
Aubameyang is one of my favourite players,
whether an incident occurred or not.
I don't know,
but it's so frustrating as an Arsenal fan
because you know that this team is capable of at least top 4.
We haven't done it in so long, and you've just got to ask why.
And I think it's up to the manager really to get that solved.
Come close, guys. Come together.
Guys,
first thing, you have to be ready for the physical battle out there.
They are going to be physical.
We have to be there right from the start.
And after that, you earn the right to play.
And this is where we want to play our game.
I want to see a team that plays with the same passion
than when we had that moment of difficulty the other day.
That you know when to lift it.
Your passion, your belief and your energy and you're together as a team.
So from a difficult moment you overturn the situation
and you batter them in the second half.
So you have to do that and I want to see you enjoy it
and smile on the pitch and play football like you fucking do it.
- Come on, let's go! - Let's go, let's go!
It's a big night for Mikel Arteta.
The Gunners won their last match without their captain,
but fourth-placed West Ham is a much bigger test.
The question is, can they do it without him again tonight?
The atmosphere inside the Emirates Stadium is much more buoyant
among the Arsenal fans than perhaps it has been in previous weeks.
And Arsenal having now a burst into the penalty area
on the far side from Tierney.
And it's a free kick outside the area
and there are players from both sides squaring up to each other.
Coufal comes forward now, but he's challenged by Martinelli.
He's quick, isn't he, Martinelli.
He is sharp.
Saka looking to tease the left back
as all the fans around us get on their feet.
Lacazette, now right foot shot, beaten away, Martinelli, no!
Brilliant save by Dawson!
What a recovery challenge that was.
And somehow it remains 0-0. A tumultuous first half here.
In the second half, Arsenal kick towards the North Bank.
And just 3 minutes in...
Martinelli now is in behind Lanzini, shoots and scores!
Brilliant goal from Gabriel Martinelli!
And the young Brazilian breaks the deadlock.
It's an erring finish, low and hard past Fabianski.
Smith-Rowe goes himself.
Oh wonderful goal!
He ramped up the victory, 2-0 they lead West Ham.
A crucial victory.
These young players, they excite you with their energy,
their enthusiasm and their quality.
And that's why these fans come to watch.
Yes!
Laca, you were fucking exceptional today.
Laca, super!
Hey, you're causing mayhem.
Different gravy today. You, different gravy.
Guys,
I asked you to play with full concentration
and to be proactive.
And mama mia! I was looking at your faces,
and you were there for every fucking ball.
All of you without exception.
Guys, Lacazette,
the way you pat-pat-pat, you come here
and now you go in behind, I fucking love this, guys.
And then we lose the ball and Bukayo, how many wins?
How many tackles did you win today?
- How many? - Too many.
Yes, B!
And you know what? Fuck, the next game we go again.
And we play the fucking same way, guys.
I love the way you fucking performed today.
I love what I see from the team, to play with that energy, with that courage,
against that really, really difficult team to play against.
You don't invite them to do nothing in the game, lads. I'm proud of you.
We have to keep going.
And I see faces, guys...
the ones that don't play, with genuine smile, genuine,
they feel happy for the team.
And when I see that, guys, good things will happen for you. Well done.
You have to test. I need to do the 1st team players first.
The win against West Ham
takes Arsenal into fourth for the first time this season.
But just as they are building momentum on the pitch,
a new Covid variant, Omicron, threatens their good run.
It's chaos in the car park, isn't it? You know.
It's club doctor Gary O'Driscoll's job
to try to keep the players Covid free.
He's not letting anybody out of their car
until they have tested negative.
Me? I'm here since...
- How do you feel? - Since 10.45.
45 minutes.
You know, so...
What can I do?
It's not my fault!
We were actually expecting there to be possibly a small circuit break,
maybe one of the games, Boxing Day or the 28th.
But actually we're having a great run, we don't really want to stop.
We want to keep going.
Thank you, Matt. Thanks, Ains. Well done guys.
The players are chuffed, you know, and so is the manager.
The mood's great, we're playing well,
there's a good buzz around the squad.
Jacko!
Roundy.
- Merry Christmas. - Top man, B.
Good man. I take it all back.
You're actually one of the good guys.
After getting the all clear from his Covid test,
Bukayo Saka is spreading some Christmas cheer.
Ho ho ho, merry Christmas.
- I want a Santa hat, man. - I got a suit mate.
You got a suit! Give me the suit!
You all right, bro?
Santa's normally got a sack, not a Saka!
For me?
No, it's for the staff, bro.
Do you work for Arsenal staff?
Or are you a player?
What's you do? What's your job?
Me?
What's your job?
The booties.
You do the boots!
Merry Christmas!
Go spread some more joy, lad.
We're all clear. Unbelievable.
That's great work David, thank you.
Let's hope it doesn't get cancelled now.
With Gary's help, Mikel has 20 players who are Covid-free.
And against the odds, their match against Leeds is on.
Well Covid has put paid to the Premier League games this weekend.
But there is one Premier League game left standing at Elland Road.
We saw the Villa game got postponed on the way up.
So we were thinking maybe our game might be postponed.
You're looking at your BBC app and what we're seeing is, like,
every game has got a P, another P, another P.
But yeah, we just put the foot down and kept going
and hoped for the best and we're here now.
We are so lucky to be here.
We are the only game that is getting played today.
Tomorrow, I don't know what is going to happen. I'm being honest.
I don't know what it's doing tomorrow or on Monday.
So today we have to leave everything on that fucking pitch.
Right from the kick-off,
I want to see the same team
with the same capacity to dictate and impose yourself on the pitch,
individually and collectively.
Let's take again this opportunity, guys.
You've made it, you've gone a long way,
we come here, we win the match and we go.
Let's go, come on.
Lacazette, just outside the penalty area,
trying to feed the supporting Odegaard, down he goes,
it comes to Martinelli!
Arsenal lead at Elland Road.
And it's Martinelli who curls it past Meslier,
gives him no chance.
And Martinelli is in here with another good chance.
Martinelli 2-0. Beautifully taken.
What a super finish with Martinelli, full of confidence at the moment.
Saka still inside the Leeds box finds space and scores.
Arsenal easily dominate the game.
In the second half,
Leeds get one back, but it proves only to be a consolation.
Smith-Rowe's in and Smith-Rowe scores.
Arsenal secure their most emphatic league win of the season.
It's Arsenal who will go back down the M1
with smiles on their faces.
Martinelli, I thought, was absolutely top drawer today.
Do you watch him playing at the moment and think,
how does Aubameyang get back into this team?
Well, he doesn't if Martinelli keeps playing the way he is.
And what a reaction they've had in the last two games,
been absolutely outstanding,
you know, they're scoring goals now.
Arteta is turning it round and he's starting to prove to everybody
he is the right man for Arsenal.
Guys, really,
I want to congratulate you, guys,
for what you did in this pitch against this team.
It was tremendous, it was a joy to play you,
to watch you play in certain moments.
Sorry if I'm on the bench and sometimes I get mad at you.
But I'm going to keep doing that because I want to be the best
and to be the best,
we have to get a habit of doing the best possible things
every single time within a full match.
And hopefully you agree with me but credit to you.
3 games and 3 top games.
Get the beers in!
You have beer?
After Christmas, Arsenal continue their winning streak,
scoring 5 goals against Norwich on Boxing Day.
They consolidate 4th place
and are 6 points clear of their local rivals, Spurs.
- What did you get the missus? - A car.
A car?
Santa needs a big sleigh for that one.
How are we doing?
After two days off, the first team return to Colney
to prepare for their biggest test in months,
a home match against Premier League champions Manchester City.
Okay...
Guys...
As you can see because I'm standing in front of you guys,
the boss is not in.
He's tested positive yesterday.
He will miss the game.
He's not very happy with the situation, as you can imagine,
but... yeah, a shit situation, as we know.
But we have to deal with it.
Er...
For now, that means
we have three days going into Man City
and we want to use those days in the best way possible, of course,
to prepare you guys.
Play, play, play.
I am relying on you today, on the defending deep. Yeah?
Laca, you show what is needed
and the rest will follow.
All right?
A bit more pressure. Pressure.
Gabi, what's wrong?
Just... just kick.
Relax, it's too forced.
Focus on the simple things.
If the control is good, the next action will be good with you.
Okay? Control is everything.
Simple things, do them well.
Good.
Already.
Mikel, you okay?
Please try not to kill yourself with meetings.
It's a massive game,
but we need you back for Liverpool as well.
You sure? Okay, I'll speak to you in a bit.
We'll keep in touch.
Cheers, bye bye.
Any midfielder coming in, you have to pick him up.
Find our references.
We heard that Mikel Arteta has tested positive for Covid-19
and will miss the game against Manchester City,
which is far from ideal.
The preparation and the organisation and the game plan
and just seeing the way the players are responding to the instructions,
responding to the sessions...
Who's executing this better than that person?
And so on.
You know, you're missing that.
Move, move them, move them.
Yes, move them again.
In between.
What a mouth-watering match-up to welcome in a new year.
Arsenal were thrashed 5-0 at the end of August,
they found themselves filling a relegation place.
Fast-forward and Mikel Arteta's rejuvenated men
are being talked about as genuine contenders
to end their Champions League exile.
We have each other's backs.
Trust each other.
Start well, be focused on the beginning guys, it's very important.
Ready to compete, win your battles.
Guys, come on over.
Come on.
Come on!
Happy New Year to everybody, guys.
Er...
It has been a few days away from you guys
and I don't want to get emotional,
but it makes me realise how proud and how happy I am to share my life
with you every day, guys.
And I'm really sorry that I cannot be there today
because we're going to go to fucking war today and I would like to be there,
but I will be grabbing this screen
and I will be pushing and forcing and doing everything I can
to try to help you as much as possible.
Just one thing guys, be yourselves.
I want a game that you face-to-face.
I want to see the players confronting them.
When we were at the Emirates, remember what they do,
3-0 down and with 10 players
and they were putting Mahrez and Sterling on the pitch to humiliate you.
Let's fucking go for it, guys!
We are a completely different team
and to go from the first minute, think forward,
act forward and play forward
every fucking all of you, guys.
I am proud of you.
Fucking go out there and win this fucking match.
Here we are off and running here.
Manchester City beginning to dominate the ball.
De Bruyne into Sterling though into the penalty area.
Really well defended by Gabriel.
He's made his mind up, Gabriel.
He's really going to be physical.
Attacking down the opposite left-hand side this time.
Brilliant attack from the sky by Martinelli.
He's not got too much in support at the moment.
Finds Lacazette on the edge of the area.
It could be a chance for Odegaard, up against Ederson,
he takes it wide.
Well, Odegaard goes down looking for a penalty.
No penalty.
This is the best I've seen Arsenal play for a long time.
Tierney down the left. Lacazette.
And Saka in the centre.
Saka with a shot!
Saka with a goal!
Well, that wasn't in Manchester City's script
to start the New Year.
Arsenal 1, Manchester City nil.
I'll tell you what, I bet somebody's running up and down
their living room at the moment.
And there goes the halftime whistle to a standing ovation.
I can't believe I'm gonna say this, but Man City are hanging on.
Well done, guys.
Without the ball, they are trying to overload us,
everything in our left side.
That's the game plan that they have.
Gabi, you cannot stand here in front
because the goalkeeper is able to play this ball
and you need to be ready here
and then we squeeze.
If you get dragged out to any position that you are not comfortable,
we have to put them down.
You've been brilliant because everybody is defending forward
and you look so convincing.
We need to keep going.
The second half is going to be tough.
We have to maintain the game management.
Guys, play with the same focus.
We are off and under way in the second half.
Bernardo Silva trying to run at Granit Xhaka, he goes down.
Well, Granit Xhaka is furious.
He thinks that was a dive.
Well, there is a VAR review here.
And the referee gives a penalty!
Riyad Mahrez against Aaron Ramsdale.
Mahrez shoots into the corner,
left-hand side,
and the champions are back on level terms.
- It's getting really fiery. - It's Gabriel.
I think he's just booked Gabriel in the process there.
And he's headed over the goalkeeper...
Oh and Aké back on the line
and then Martinelli blazes over.
Martinelli's only got to roll into an empty net.
There's something happening everywhere.
Now it's a card coming out.
It's a second yellow and it's a red card.
Arsenal are down to ten men.
I hope Mikel Arteta isn't near any coffee cups in his study.
Gabi, the game is on in the doc's office if you wanna watch it.
The ref!
I know, mate, I know. It's a joke.
I know, mate.
Arsenal are defending, determined defending.
Aaron Ramsdale hasn't really been seriously tested
since they went down to 10, as Thomas Partey dispossess Sterling.
There will be 6 added minutes to hold on with 10 men.
He chips it into the Arsenal area,
Ben White got something on it, Laporte helps it goalward.
And it's been steered in by Rodri
in stoppage time at the end of the game.
Manchester City have surely stolen the points.
Arsenal 1, Manchester City 2.
I can only imagine what's going on in Mikel Arteta's house.
Don't worry, Gabi, bro.
Fucking people that are outside don't understand football.
In slow motion, anything looks hard.
He decides nobody foul and after the fucking VAR gives foul.
Fucking rules, man!
Listen up, guys.
Guys, I hear a lot of frustration,
and I am completely aligned with you for what happened
and the decisions that were given and everything.
But from my side, guys, you only have words of praise.
To play the way you played against the best team in the world.
Without a doubt it was immense.
The result is not a consequence of the performance today.
And we have to be as well fair with ourselves that the line is so thin
and there were things in our control in very important moments
and we gave them away.
And I'm sorry but the moment you give something away to those teams,
you get punished.
But for the rest,
the way you played guys, the courage that you showed with the ball,
the aggression you showed without the ball...
Be positive because I haven't seen any team do it this season.
So well done. Okay.
The whole game, we can't change it.
It's not possible.
Well, the January transfer window is open,
the rumour mill is back up and running.
Early ball in.
It's Lewis Grabban.
When I lose a duel, I am upset!
When I lose the small-sided games, I am upset!
Because that is a fucking standard,
because you come here and now you fucking lose.
Nowhere near guys, it's fucking shit.
You know he's in Barcelona?
- Who? - Auba.
Really?