ARTETA BRINGING GUNS TO A BATTLE
MIKEL ARTETA can sense Arsenal’s fighting qualities of yesteryear are coming to the fore once more.
Of course, nobody is saying the Spaniard’s class of 2021 begins to compare to Arsene Wenger’s notorious warriors of the late 90s and early 2000s.
Arteta is the first to accept it will take considerably more than a couple of vital, backto-back 1-0 league wins over fellow strugglers Norwich and Burnley for that to happen.
However, as the 18th anniversary of Martin Keown’s infamous brawl with Manchester United striker Ruud van Nistelrooy coincides with today’s North London derby, he does believe his Gunners’ willingness to battle for every ball and point is bubbling nicely.
The Arsenal boss said: “I think every time we are on the pitch we have to do it for ourselves.
“We know that is the basic principle to compete in any game in the Premier League and to get the results.
“And, hopefully, afterwards other people will be convinced that we are able to do this. We’ve done it in the past, since I’ve been here and in previous years with other managers.
“And we have kept that belief that we are able to do it now.”
Not that Arteta expects Bukayo Saka and Co to take that to the sort of levels witnessed during the club’s ugly heyday for explosive red-card dust-ups, which were such a feature of those glory-laden times under Wenger.
Yet there are clearly elements to that
Old Trafford war in September 2003 – when all hell broke lose at the final whistle after a savage, bruising stalemate – that impress the ex-arsenal, Everton and Rangers
playmaker. Arteta, who side can overtake Spurs in the table with a 2-0 victory at the Emirates, added with a grin: “It’s another generation of fantastic players that created a history in those clashes. I didn’t experience it but it was phenomenal to watch from the outside.”