Mikel Arteta expressed regret over Arsenal’s few goal-scoring chances in their narrow 1-0 loss to Newcastle United, emphasizing the slim margin between the teams.
Alexander Isak’s crucial goal in a game with few clear-cut chances secured three points for the hosts. Arteta was disappointed that Arsenal’s entries into the Magpies’ final third didn’t produce enough major opportunities to test Nick Pope in his goal.
Arteta admitted Arsenal did not create enough chances
After the match, Arteta admitted: “We are obviously very frustrated and disappointed with the result. I think we started the game really well, we were on top of it and in one action we found ourselves 1-0 down after a brilliant cross and finish.”
“I think the energy and momentum changed. We got dragged too much into the game they wanted to play and weren’t good enough or consistent enough to get out of that. You look at the chances, possession and dominance and there’s no difference between the teams”.
“Probably we had to be on top of that, but the reality is when we had it we didn’t score and we didn’t create enough threat constantly against an opposition that does very well at what it does”.
“Defensively they are really good, when they are ahead in that result they take a very different approach and we struggled to open them up. When we did the final pass, the quality of those deliveries and positions wasn’t good enough to really hurt them and when we had three big chances, obviously, we didn’t score.”
The result marked Arsenal’s first consecutive league defeats since May 2022. However, with crucial away games next week against Milan and Chelsea, Arteta is confident his players will bounce back quickly and rise to the new challenges ahead.
Arsenal is heading to Italy on Tuesday as the fixtures come in quick succession, and Mikel believes he will see a strong response from his team, considering their track record of recovering from setbacks in recent years.
“Today we have to really swallow that one because it’s always painful losing a game in this league,” he added. “It’s painful, it’s got its consequences and today we’re not going to find the right words to describe it but by Wednesday we really have to be ready”.
“That’s the sport, you get knocked out, you are in a difficult position, you feel terrible about and in a few hours, you need to start to stand up, find solutions, work more and get into it.”
