Mikel Arteta
Mikel Arteta
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Teams that rely heavily on dead-ball situations can go through periods where the goals simply refuse to arrive, even when the chances keep coming. That absence of a finishing touch can affect confidence inside the group, particularly when the same routines that proved decisive in previous seasons stop producing the same results. Managers often look for one moment that restores the belief the players already show in training.
The recent home fixture produced two goals from different phases of play, yet the first of them arrived from a corner after several earlier opportunities had gone unconverted. A defender who has only recently arrived at the club was the one who forced the ball over the line, and the manager believes that single contribution can have a wider impact. The side moved level with the leaders at the top of the table as a result.
Arsenal beat Everton 2-0 at the Emirates, with Ezri Konsa scoring the opener from a corner and Gabriel Magalhaes adding the second from open play. Mikel Arteta admits he was disappointed it took until that win for the side to score a set-piece goal, but believes Konsa has now unlocked their threat from dead balls, according to Metro. After winning the Premier League last season thanks in part to being extremely effective from set-pieces, Arteta reckons the goal will help his team rediscover their belief in those situations.
‘I’m sure that’s going to unlock something and that belief of the players,’ the Gunners boss said. ‘So they are really convinced. You have to see them when we train the level of attention and how much they believe in what we do and what Nico [Jover, set-piece coach] does as well. There’s no question about that, but at the end he has to come through and he has to make the difference and we know that that is a massive welcome for us.’
He added: ‘We hadn’t scored from a set-piece, which we were disappointed with because we had generated so many chances as well. I think in midweek we should have scored at least two in Munich and we didn’t and that would probably win us the game. We know that in every phase of play we want to be the best and we’re not going to stop until we do it.’
Martin Keown has talked up Gabriel to the point of being a club legend. ‘Gabriel is into his sixth season at Arsenal now and this guy is just a machine,’ Keown said on BBC’s Match of the Day. ‘You rarely see a striker get the better of him. I’ve seen him mature a lot and become the leader at the back. He was immense again today. He just loves defending and the fans just buzz of him. He’s a legend of the football club now.’
There was great concern for Gabriel when he appeared to be injured just a few minutes before he scored his goal in the second half. Arteta had high praise for the Brazil international for battling through the pain. ‘He is a clear example of when I talk about the mentality of the team,’ Arteta said. ‘The mentality of the team is the mentality of the players. And he is a great example of that. We were all scared not only for the way he went down but for the reaction of the players that were next to him. Immediately he says he wants to continue and he scores the goal that helps us win the game.’
Konsa’s contribution from the set-piece has been framed as the spark that can restore the attacking threat from corners and free-kicks. The manager’s comments underline the importance the coaching staff place on those situations and the belief that one goal can unlock more. Arsenal will look to build on that moment in the fixtures ahead as they aim to stay competitive at the top of the table.