Arteta opens up after Arsenal's narrow victory over Forest, praising one player in particular.
"Arteta" praised the "Arsenal player" for playing with patience to secure a successful away win over "Forest," singling out Madueke for special praise.
Mikel Arteta, manager of the "Gunners" Arsenal, said that their 1-0 away win over the "Forest" Nottingham Forest in the English Premier League last night was a hard-fought three points that required great patience.
In that match, Arsenal had very few chances to score, but finally secured the winning goal with a beautiful strike from Noni Madueke in the 80th minute, bringing their total to 18 points and moving up to second place in the standings, just three points behind leaders Manchester City.
Arteta said, “It was a very important victory. We knew this game would be very tight. Forest is a very difficult team to break down and score against. Almost everything had to be perfect. We had some chances in the first half but failed to convert.”
“Then in the second half, we had to play a completely different game. We had to avoid frustration, increase our attacking threat and the risks we were willing to take. At the same time, we had to stay calm and disciplined to ensure the game didn’t open up. We maintained that level, had better moments, more continuous attacks, and got closer to the penalty area.”
“Having a lot of patience and belief that eventually we would break through their defense led us to today’s victory. It was a hard-earned win, and we deserved it.”
“I’m very happy for Madueke. He is a determined player with quality and decisiveness. He makes me smile because he is special, beloved by everyone in the dressing room. The way he communicates and builds relationships with people, he truly is someone special.”
“I think I once saw an interview where they asked some of our players, ‘If you have a problem, who would you call?’ Some said they would call Madueke. I was very surprised! But that is a huge compliment and truly shows who he is. Now he has become a game-deciding player, which is what we expect from our players.”
“He’s a player who is not limited to playing on the left or right. He has had more chances on the right side, but now the team needs him on the left, and he has done very well there.”