Arteta issues injury updates as tough trip to Newcastle looms

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta shared injury updates before the long trip to Newcastle; also: My CD choices On The Road this week

Hello,

Happy Friday!

Mikel Arteta has been speaking ahead of another long trip tomorrow, this time to Newcastle.

This is what he said:

on his sympathy for what is going on in Spain:
Before we start to talk about football, I would like to talk about the terrible disaster that is affecting my country at the moment. I want to send from our side our thoughts, our full support and our sympathy to everyone who is affected - all the families and all the individuals. Obviously all of the country that is pulling together to try to find the best possible solution in this difficult moment. From here, I just want to show my full support and ask everybody in the way that they can to support because it’s terrible what has happened.

on Gabriel’s availability:
We have a training session today. If he can complete that, he’ll be available. He hasn’t had any training sessions yet, but if he’s able to do that today, he’ll be available to be in the squad.

on Calafiori, White and Odegaard:
Riccardo and Martin are out definitely. With Ben, we don’t know yet. He hasn’t trained yet. He could not train, he could not get involved, so let’s wait and see if he’s available.

on if there is concern about the gap at the top of the table:
You want to be first, you want to win every game. We know the situations that we have to play with this season, but we’re right in the mix. We know the tough challenge that we’re going to face tomorrow, but we’re fully ready for that.

on last season’s trip to St. James’ Park and his comments afterwards:
It’s part of the past and part of the situation that happened. You learn from it, you take a lot of positives as well and we've moved on.

on if the standard of refereeing has improved since then:
My intention was not that the comments worked. I have to say what I feel on the day. They’re certainly trying their best.

on if he learned something new about the group in the Liverpool game:
Unfortunately a lot of things happened that we didn’t even plan for. I was suspecting, with the size of the squad that we had, to be very adaptable in the season and that’s something that we worked on from day one in pre-season. But obviously, not to be that adaptable, especially in certain scenarios, but for sure the team showed an incredible capacity to compete, to be better than the opponent in many moments, but it’s true that in the second half very early again something happened that affected the rest. We are there.

on how White performed at centre-back against Liverpool:
That’s Ben’s quality. He can play in those two positions, within those positions he can adapt his role and play different heights, especially in ball possession we’re demanding against a very difficult, tricky opponent with very particular duels, especially in that section of the pitch. To do that job, when he hasn’t played there for over a year, I think he was really good.

on Newcastle’s start to the season:
The league position after nine games is very tricky when you see the fixtures that they’ve had as well and certain situations that they’ve been through as well, but they’re a fantastic team. They’re really well coached, they’re very intense. It’s a great stadium to play in, you know what you’re going to face there, so we're looking forward to it.

on Ruben Amorim potentially becoming Manchester United manager:
I cannot talk about this kind of situations.

on what it was like being a young manager in the Premier League:
It was fantastic, great.

on Ethan Nwaneri’s potential:
I can talk about how good he is right now. At 17 years old, to be in a position like he is in at one of the biggest clubs in Europe, I think sums up really well the level that he has. What is going to happen in the future is mainly is going to depend on him and how much he wants it. At the moment he wants it a lot and he's surrounded by the right people and then you will need a crystal ball to see where he is going to be in a year, two years, three years. My prediction is going to be very positive.

on whether he is amongst the best young players Mikel has seen:
It is rare to see a talent like this at 17 years old, that's true. But when we gave him his debut in the Premier League, there was a lot of talk about it but we didn't do it because he was a gift, we did it because we knew the pathway that we wanted to build with him and we wanted to send him a really strong sign about how much we trust him and how much we wanted him to stay with us. We are delighted to have him.

on why there are a lot of injuries across the league this season:
I think there are two aspects - one, we've been quite unlucky with some of them and especially to happen in very similar positions, and then obviously the demands that those players are having every every week. If you put that into perspective as well, you have a smaller squad because all the restrictions that are hitting all the clubs which means you cannot have 30 quality players in the squad, and the moment one player has to play more minutes affects them and there’s a knock-on effect for the rest of squad, which is quite difficult to manage.

on whether Mikel has to protect Ethan:
I think the biggest thing is to push him, and then when he is being pushed, you always grab him right behind to make sure that he's always stable and protected. But with this talent, you have to push him. The protection is necessary to keep an eye on him and be at the right distance, but he needs to see that he can fly and don't clip any wings.

on how helpful it is for him to have Bukayo Saka who has been on the same journey:
I think that creates belief in the building, through all the academy and all the young players we signed at a very early age that there is a pathway that is clear and that we're going to give them opportunities, and if they earn it, they'll be treated like the rest.

on Thomas Partey playing more minutes this season than last:
The one thing that we needed was Thomas to be at the level we wanted certainly. He's working so hard to do what he's doing at the moment, and I think he's playing really well in different positions with different demands and he's coping with it in a great way. He’s a big player for us.

on whether there will be contract talks with Thomas soon:
He’s only 31 and he's in a really good place and yeah, we'll have discussions. 

on his own talent at the age of 17 compared to Ethan:
[I was] not at that level. I was really lucky as well because somebody trusted me at that age and gave me the opportunity, which is what they need as well. For the talent to emerge, somebody has to give you the chance, the belief, then you have to be surrounded by the right team, the right players If you do that, you have a chance.

on what he can apply to Ethan from his own experiences:
Individually, a lot of things that I should have done, that I learned, so if we can give him advice, great. What I like about him is he really believes that he has the ability to do it. He really believes he is capable of taking anybody’s place, and he’s earned the right and trust of his teammates, which I think is vital for a teenager coming through.

on the physical step up to Premier League matches:
It’s a huge jump, and we need to understand where he’s coming from, and if he had any issues in the past three or five years in his growth and development. The physical side, as is the mental side, the tactical side, is really important to take care of because a lot goes through the roof straight away without you knowing. Then you look back and say: ‘look what he’s done in the last four months compared to the last 18 months.’ We need to keep an eye on that.

on if his meditation helps him with refereeing decisions:
On the touchline I haven’t got to that point of meditating more! Maybe it’s something that has to happen. I just want the best for the team, and I want to give the team the best chance to be as competitive as they can to win the majority of football matches. So I know that when they change the rules on certain behaviours on touchlines, we need to evolve, and that’s what I try to do.

on if he has evolved to manage his emotions:
I don’t want to miss any games, that’s for sure. I cannot promise you if we score a goal I won’t be jumping up and down the touchline, I cannot guarantee that. Hopefully as well they [referees] have adapted and understood that emotions are a big part of that. I cannot control myself in one squared line, but so far it’s worked.

on if Ben’s issue is a groin injury:
No, this is related more to a joint.

on when Takehiro Tomiyasu might be back:
I don’t expect him to be available before the break unfortunately.

on if Inter Milan next week is a possibility for Martin:
Now is the stage when he will do certain work with us, Let’s see how he deals with pain, if he moves naturally enough, if he is physically now at the level that requires him to compete. But with the workrate and the hours he’s put in, I would be surprised that the moment he starts training with us, we don’t say that he looks ready. So hopefully soon.

on how he reflected on Newcastle’s goal against us last season:
I didn’t stop on that sequence [when he watched it back]. It’s already in my hard drive so I didn’t want to go through that again!

on if we have received harsher treatment from referees:
No, because every club has a history with games and situations and comments, that’s part of the game. We have to understand it for what it is, if every decision I make is going to get criticised, or they understand or don’t understand it. It’s part of the game, we are always going to have opinions about the job, that’s normal. 

on if there is any lasting consequence from that incident at St. James’ Park:
No, hopefully we’ve passed it. We talked through it in depth and that’s done. A year in football is a long, long time.

…………

I Like Driving In My Car

It was a long old drive back from Lancashire on Thursday afternoon, after covering Arsenal’s superb 3-0 victory at Preston on Wednesday evening.

I always used to drive up and back in a day/night when faced with big treks reporting on/supporting Gunners awaydays, but over the years, the hassle faced with motorway closures, coupled with simply being knackered has led me to stay over after far away matches.

I’m glad I did, after hearing some horror stories about loyal Gooners not getting back from Preston until 2am/3am/4am/5am, and I really don’t miss that feeling of flopping into bed dead tired after a four/five/six hour drive through dark and unfamiliar backwaters after the powers-that-be decided to shut whatever particular motorway you happen to need to get home.

That said, a massive well done to each and every Gooner who made the long trip up to Preston and back on Wednesday evening/Thursday morning.

As I noted on Twitter, the fact that 5,656 loyal supporters attended a League Cup game more than 200 miles away on a Wednesday night is absolutely outstanding.

Give yourself a pat on the back. Especially as many of the same fans will be heading up to Newcastle on Saturday morning.

Can I humbly mention that myself and my youngest daughter will also be joining that number in the away end at St James’s Park on Saturday.

Even as a reporter that covers Arsenal home and away and all over Europe, I still love an away day in the away end, catching up with old pals, which is why I’m taking my youngest daughter on Saturday, as well as seeing a few mates. I can’t wait. See you in Newcastle.

……….

Southport snaps

So, I stayed over in Southport, two minutes from the beach, Despite, or maybe because, it was such a dull and dank day, I always really enjoy visiting seaside towns out of season.

There’s something melancholic about them, which I find strangely appealing.

Southport was no different. After working all morning in my small, but perfectly formed hotel room, I had a lunchtime stroll, around the pier and seafront.

As per a reprise of my month in Germany at the Euros, here’s a collection of my holiday snaps from Southport.

……….

In Praise of Autumnal Colours

It’s a rare treat for me not to be in a rush, which is another reason I now enjoy a leisurely drive back the next day from an away game. I always try and avoid the motorway for as long as possible, just so I can have a meander through wherever it is that I’ve been staying.

So, can I just day, I really enjoyed motoring round the highways and byways of West Lancashire, through picture postcard perfect stone walled villages, complete with bright red postboxes, and swathes of autumnal browns and oranges created by fallen leaves, in a succession of wonderfully beautiful evocative scenes.

…..

Music for the long drive

Before Covid I used to post pictures of CDs that I intended to listen to during long drives to away games. It was a nice way to prompt music chat, as a restorative antidote to incessant chatter about sport.

I could, like many of us, I suspect, simply talk about sport every single waking minute of the day and night - and would enjoy doing so - although as I get older, I at least try and offer a semblance of being a vaguely rounded person, by attempting to speak of other things, not least music.

However, somehow, along the way, I simply stopped posting pictures of my music choices, despite still intently listening to music in the car - rather than say, the inane drivel on football call-ins for example. Not least because I have a fraying Sainsbury’s plastic bag packed full of CDs in the back of my car.

This week I posted my music choices again. Please do let me know what you think.

And watch this space for my choices for the drive to Newcastle.

PS: