Arsenal information: Mikel Arteta urged to carry out overhaul as boss despatched warning
Rio Ferdinand has given Mikel Arteta some words of advice as Arsenal focus on their Champions League last-eight tie with Sporting CP on Wednesday night
Mikel Arteta has been sent a warning
Arsenal will be looking to keep their hopes of a Premier League and Champions League double on track against Sporting CP on Wednesday evening. The Gunners will take on the Portuguese side in the second leg of their quarter-final tie at the Emirates Stadium.
At present, Mikel Arteta’s men possess a slender 1-0 aggregate advantage following Kai Havertz’s late strike that gave them the upper hand heading back to north London. Now, the task is maintaining that lead for 90 minutes to secure a semi-final berth.
Arsenal faltered over the weekend, suffering a 2-1 defeat to Bournemouth that enabled Manchester City to reduce their gap. Arteta acknowledged the setback was a “big punch in the face” but called for concentration on European competition to restore momentum.
Rio Ferdinand has urges overhaul
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Premier League champion offers guidance Rio Ferdinand has urged Arsenal to overhaul their approach ahead of their clash with Manchester City or they’ll “get battered,” reports the Mirror.
The Manchester United legend, who has claimed the Premier League crown six times, insists that the Gunners cannot afford to retreat and let City dictate proceedings at the Etihad Stadium.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Rio Ferdinand Presents, the former centre-back said: “If you go there and sit back like Liverpool did at PSG the other day, it’s slapsville. You’re getting pumped. You can’t do that. Do you win leagues doing that?”
Ferdinand pointed to Bournemouth’s triumph over Arsenal at the weekend, suggesting that Arteta could draw some insights from this setback for their championship-defining encounter. He added: “This is glaring, the way City set up to block all passing lanes, pressing high.”
“I don’t think Bournemouth went four up the pitch as glaring in exactly the same way. They were great in terms of blocking passing lanes making Arsenal having to go over it or just panic a little bit and give the ball away.”
“I think, is that the blueprint? Bournemouth have copied it their own way. Mikel Arteta and his team haven’t found an answer yet. It wasn’t a good performance. At least get about and put it on some players.”
Ex-transfer target issues warning
Marc Guehi reckons City have demonstrated they possess the qualities needed to “step up” and snatch the title away from Arsenal. The defender chose Manchester in January after departing Crystal Palace, despite attracting strong interest from the likes of Liverpool and Arsenal.
After their Carabao Cup triumph over the Gunners, Guehi acknowledged that City have drawn belief from claiming silverware and are hungry for more.
He said: “In these moments it’s about stepping up, the players stepping up, the team stepping up and I said it last week, it’s about arriving at the right moment.”
“I hope we’re arriving. The trophy definitely gave us a lot of confidence. It doesn’t matter what trophy it is, it’s a trophy and it helps the football club so everyone is just focused on the next day, the next game and just try and be consistent as possible.”
“Always, it always gives you belief and it does help everyone. We hope we can win more, that’s the aim. That’s the target.”
The England international stressed they aren’t monitoring the north London outfit’s sequence of results but will instead concentrate on their own ability to see them across the finish line.
