Arsenalmayhaveendedtheseasonwithoutsilverware,butthesilverlining,inMikelArteta’seyes,isthathissidehasshowntheycancompetewithanyone.
SpeakingaftertheGunnerssecuredChampionsLeaguefootballforathirdconsecutiveseasonwitha1-0winoverNewcastle,sealedbyDeclanRice’ssweepingfinish,themanagerstressedtheneedfora “bigsummer”inthetransfermarkettotaketheclubtothenextlevel.
Here’swhathehadtosaytoPremierLeagueProductions…
On securing Champions League football…
Yeah, it was always one of the objectives at the start of the season. We set the aims much higher than that. As I said to the crowd, we had a dream to deliver a big trophy this season, and we haven’t been able to do that. But at the same time, make sure that while you are chasing that dream, it doesn’t get too cloudy and you are not able to see all the good things that this football club is doing, the team is doing, the players are doing, and we have to continue to try to achieve it.
On what Arsenal can learn from this season…
Well, first of all, that we can compete with anybody under any circumstances. And the circumstances, they’ve been very special and quite difficult to deal for a long, long time during the season. We have made a massive step in the Champions League, and I think we came short of the capacity that we have still to improve. In the Premier League, as I said, it’s a long season. We had a lot of issues to deal with, but the team, I think, has been very consistent, but not enough to have the availability, especially, and some discipline issues that we had, as well to put more pressure on the opponent.
On a big summer ahead…
Well, if a big summer means recruitment and bringing players, it’s going to be a big summer for everybody. I think it’s time to reflect, reset, and set again the standards even higher, see how we can improve, be very critical with each of us and the things that we can do better, and how we can help this football club to go to another level. And for sure, recruitment will be part of that, especially because we are really, really short on numbers. We have players that are finishing their contracts, so, yeah, we need some help.