Arteta praises team's strong determination to turn things around

In the 19th round of the 2024/25 Premier League , Arsenal defeated Brentford 3-1 after Jesus, Merino and Martinelli scored goals when they were one goal behind. When coach Arteta was interviewed, he also praised the players for their determination in the game and believed that the team deserved the victory.

Arsenal captain Odegaard was intercepted in the 13th minute. After Damsgaard got the ball, he created an opportunity with a straight pass. Mbemo received the ball and broke into the penalty area, shook off the defense and shot low to score, helping Brentford to open the scoring with 1-0.

In the 29th minute, Thomas Partey got the ball in the melee and made a long shot. Brentford goalkeeper Flecken dropped the ball when clearing it. Jesus seized the opportunity and headed the ball into the goal, equalizing the score for Arsenal at 1-1.

In the 50th minute of the second half, Nwaneri took a corner kick, Jesus volleyed but hit the opponent, and then Merino made a supplementary shot to help Arsenal overtake 2 to 1. Only 3 minutes later, Nwaneri's pass was cleared, and Martinelli got the ball and volleyed to help Arsenal expand their lead to 3 to 1.

In the end, Arsenal reversed Brentford 3-1 away from home. After three consecutive wins, Arsenal is currently ranked second in the standings with 39 points, 6 points behind Liverpool, which is in first place.

Looking back on the performance in this game, Arsenal coach Arteta said, "This is the first difficult game of the new year. It is a difficult place to deal with, especially when the team is one goal behind. But I think the team showed great calmness, strong determination and attitude to turn the result of the game around, as well as constantly creating threats and taking the initiative, and I think we deserve this victory."

“This game was very difficult because we lost several players again. We had to deal with these situations and make adjustments, and Nwaneri started for the first time in the Premier League. Whoever played in the game, they showed the right attitude and performed well, which maintained the overall level of the team.”

Arteta also said, "Nvaneri played here before, which is a good story. Coming to this stadium to play, I think he was very calm, very determined, dared to take risks and take the initiative to attack, which was very impressive."

Speaking about the team’s performance during this period, Arteta shared, “We’ve been through a lot, the team has had to deal with a lot of unexpected situations, but we’ve still maintained a very high level of performance and have been very stable.”

"We certainly want to be better and we can be better, especially in some details. But I think the team is on the right track."