I must admit, I don’t usually pay too much attention to opposition managers’ press conferences, but ahead of West Ham v Arsenal, I found myself listening to the entirety of what Mikel Arteta had to say to the media.
And there was one thing that struck me more than anything else during a period of 12 minutes I’m never likely to get back.
Only a tiny part of the press conference was actually about West Ham.
Arsenal Focus Elsewhere Ahead Of Sunday
In truth, there was barely anything about Sunday’s game at the London Stadium at all.
The vast majority of questions centred around Arsenal’s Champions League final, Paris Saint-Germain and their Premier League title battle with Manchester City.
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The press conference ended with a brief mention of Declan Rice, where Arteta acknowledged the midfielder had been well developed at West Ham, but aside from that, the Hammers barely got a mention.
For those interested, here’s what Arteta had to say about Sunday’s opponents — although, much like the upcoming Daniel Dubois versus Fabio Wardley fight, blink and you’ll miss it.
Arteta’s Brief West Ham Message
When Arteta was eventually asked about West Ham, it was framed entirely around making sure his players stayed focused after reaching the Champions League final.
“We talked immediately after the game, and this is great. What a moment, we earned it.
“We’ll have time to prepare and get ready for that final, but now the focus, the attention, the detail, the energy, everything has to be put into West Ham, there is nothing else there, and we made it very clear.”
Maybe There’s Hope For West Ham Yet
Now, let me be clear — I don’t expect the Arsenal boss to be anything other than fully focused on Sunday’s trip to East London.
But from what I could see, there was precious little appetite among anyone present at the Arsenal press conference to discuss the game itself.
Maybe I’m clutching at straws here.
But if the Arsenal players are as focused on the Champions League final as everyone else seems to be… then maybe, just maybe, West Ham could be in for a game on Sunday.