Arsenal struck four times in 13 blistering minutes to maintain their perfect start to the Champions League group stage with a thumping 4-0 win over Atletico Madrid.
Big Gabi opened the scoring with a trademark header from a Declan Rice free-kick on 57 minutes, before Gabriel Martinelli and Viktor Gyokeres, twice, completed the rout with 20 minutes still to play.
Here’s what the managers, players, pundits and stattos made of the action…
Mikel Arteta on an impressive win…
I’m extremely happy and proud of the performance and the results against a really good side. I was very impressed when I analysed them, and what I’ve seen today about them as well. So, I knew about the difficulty of it. It required a lot of aggression and a lot of patience as well, and the way they managed the context of the game and the way they can manipulate their behaviour was really impressive. With it being 0-0 at half-time, even though we generated two or three big chances, we had to stay patient, but at the same time, increase a little bit, set some areas to damage them more. We’ve done it, and then in this Champions League, I think we were very effective as well.
Source: Post-game press conference
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Diego Simeone on a tough night for his side…
It is a learning curve. We just need to keep improving. I thought we competed really well to begin with. From 60 minutes they were the better team and deserved to win. I would say they are the best team we have faced this season. They compete so well, they run and they run, and they have quality all over the pitch. We have to put this behind us now and we need to focus in training on the things that went right and we need to make improvements as well.
Source: Amazon Prime Video Sport
Atletico defender David Hancko on conceding four goals in 13 minutes…
It was not easy. We were just looking around and you feel like you’re in the game, you’re going for the points and it’s coming to the last part of the game, but then it’s bam, bam, bam, bam. Suddenly the game is over. You just need to collect yourself and try to play more simply.
Source: UEFA.com
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Arteta on Rice’s set-piece delivery…
It was superb. We could have scored in the first half but to have that ability to score those types of goals and different players are scoring. We want to continue and improve.
Source: Amazon Prime Video Sport
Viktor Gyokeres on his brace…
Both were great! I was a bit unsure if I was standing in an offside position for the first one, so maybe that’s why I showed a bit more for the second.
Source: UEFA.com
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UEFA’s Technical Observer Group on awarding the player of the match to Gyokeres…
Gyokeres takes the award for his overall game. He led the line perfectly as his side’s first defender with an aggressive press, and also showed good hold-up play. His hard work was then rewarded with two goals.
Source: UEFA.com
Gabriel on the win and Arsenal’s prowess from set pieces…
We are so happy. We know we play at home, in front of our fans against a big team like Atletico, but everyone worked well. We need to keep going. Of course, it’s a big win, we need to enjoy it, but rest as well because we have a big game on Sunday as well. We work a lot [on set pieces], it’s not about me, it’s about the team, when we get in the box, we believe and Declan Rice is unbelievable. It’s good for us [the defensive record], it gives us confidence, we need to keep going, we’ve just started the season, we need to keep pushing.
Source: Amazon Prime Video Sport
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Arteta on Lewis-Skelly…
If you look at it from what he’s done from December last year to now, at his age, at this level, it’s incredible. But I said it before, he’s been really focused, really humble, and really good. When that happens and you have to play after, you are ready, and I thought he was really good today.
Source: Post-game press conference
Gyokeres on ending his scoring drought…
It feels amazing. It’s been a while, but we’ve been winning games, so in that part it’s been still a great couple of months. But yeah, it’s been, of course, as a striker, you want to score goals and to get two today is amazing.
Source: Amazon Prime Video Sport
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Clarence Seedorf on how Arsenal start winning big titles…
Every year there is too much of this chat around Arsenal. For the team, the challenge for them and Arteta is to keep that noise out of the changing room. There is too much talk about the past, the pressure and this and that. They need to believe they can win and that’s the only thing that matters.
Source: Amazon Prime Video Sport (via Football.London)
Gyokeres on the message at the break…
At half-time the message was to keep going and then of course some adjustments in certain things. But I think we did well in the first half and to keep doing the right things and then of course, finish your chances when they come. When you win games and you do these performances, it builds confidence in the team. The belief has to always be there but of course, this helps to boost it. We just want to keep going like this.
Source: Arsenal.com
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David Raya on the importance of clean sheets…
Clean sheets are always important. I give them the same credit as goals. If we’re keeping clean sheets, it’s going to make games easier, to win them. It’s really, really important for the whole team, not giving away that many chances and being very, very solid. It’s a team effort, it’s a collective effort from the striker to the goalkeeper. Everyone is on it, no one wants to give anything (away) and everyone wants to intercept that ball even before getting to the halfway line. It’s really important for everyone to feel that way and we’re not giving away that many chances which is perfect.
Source: Hayters
Arsene Wenger on whether Arsenal can win the league this year…
Yeah, without any hesitation. You would say to me it’s like that every year, but I believe that this year it’s really very equipped to deal with any kind of problems. When they lost Havertz, Saka last year at the end of the season, it was too much, but this year you have Madueke, Eze, who’s creative, they lost to Odegaard last year in a crucial moment, and Eze this year can replace him. You have Martinelli, Trossard, you have at the back as well, Mosquera, they’re on the flanks, at the back they have a replacement. You have Lewis-Skelly who doesn’t get in the team at the moment, and he’s in the Englsh national team. I think they have the most complete squad.
Source: beIN SPORTS
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Paul Merson on a statement win for the Gunners…
Alvarez hit the bar a couple of minutes into the second half, who knows, if that goes in, perhaps it’s a different game. But I can’t take anything away from Arsenal. They just kept going and going and just steamrolled them in the end, LITERALLY steamrolled them. I ain’t seen an Atletico Madrid team in a long time look lost, LITERALLY looked lost, and beaten up, and well, well, well beaten. It’s a massive statement. Big game this weekend now against Palace, they need to win that game, it’s a big football match. They are rolling along now, that’s a great performance, especially in the Champions League against Atletico Madrid.
Source: Sky Sports
The post Post-Atletico quotes round-up: Arteta, Simeone, Gyokeres, Hancko, Big Gabi, Wenger, Merson appeared first on Arseblog News – the Arsenal news site.
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