Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta tells players to control their emotions better in wake of Brighton defeat
The Gunners have lost their first two games back since the restart
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Arsenal head coach Mikel Arteta believes his players need to have better control of their emotions.
The Gunners have lost their first two Premier League games back since the restart, slipping to defeat at Manchester City before conceding a last-gasp goal to lose 2-1 at Brighton on Saturday.
Arteta saw his players react angrily after goalkeeper Bernd Leno appeared to suffer a serious knee injury, landing awkwardly under close attention from Brighton match-winner Neal Maupay.
Arsenal midfielder Matteo Guendouzi is likely to be in bother with the Football Association after putting his hands around the throat of Maupay at the full-time whistle, with the Seagulls man criticising the opposition after the game.
“Arsenal players need to learn humility, maybe sometimes. They have been talking a lot first half, second half when they were 1-0 up. They got what they deserved,” Maupay told BT Sport.
While Arteta disagreed with Maupay’s assessment, he did admit that showing more restraint may be necessary.
“When we show frustration we have to show it in the right way,” he said.
“I haven’t seen the images (of Guendouzi) or what happened, but we will talk about it if that is the case. Emotionally, we have to control the situations much better.”
Arsenal went ahead on the south coast through a fine individual strike from Nicolas Pepe, but they have struggled to hold on to leads and were once again found wanting.
“I think every game is completely different,” Arteta replied when asked if not being able to stay ahead was a mental issue for the players.
“When I was talking about competing, there are details when you go ahead and game management-wise where we have to improve a lot.
“But we are a very young squad, I don’t want to use it as an excuse because it is still a football game and it doesn’t matter at what age you are competing, but at this level you can’t do it.”
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments