What’s the team news
Everybody’s OK. As you saw, we had Cedric, Fabio and Emile playing with the u21s. They looked fit and trained all week with us and are available for selection.
How confident are the team now?
Great. It’s been great to win, great to perform well. But it’s just two games, there’s a whole season ahead of us. We have to focus on the next match, what’s ahead of us and the areas that we can improve.
How important is it to not get carried away?
It’s just two games, there’s still a whole season to play for. We know that, we’re very conscious of that, we have to play better. That’s been the whole aim all week.
What do you make of Bournemouth?
That will be a really tough match. I played there many times, I know how tough it is, I expect the atmosphere to be hectic there. It’s a team that is used to winning because last year they had a really good season and they’ve started the season well. I know the squad very well as well and I know they’re going to make a really difficult game for us.
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They’ve continued their traditional style under Scott Parker
Yes. I think it’s a good mixture between what Bournemouth used to do and what Scott is as a manager. They have evolved the team in a really positive way with a very clear identity as well and they execute that against any opponent. Credit to them for what they do.
What do you make of Scott Parker?
Really good. I always admired him as a player, with his character and I know him personally really well. I’m really happy for him. The way he presents himself, they way he wants to play this game I think it’s great to have managers who are going to play in the way that he wants to do it. I wish him the best of luck apart from tomorrow.
He’s well dressed on the touchline, what do you think about that?
I think he was always like that as a player. He presents himself really well.
How have you been impressed with Jesus’ start?
Probably the biggest difference since I worked with him is his maturity. A few years have gone by and he’s had a few experiences. His language has improved so much and he’s got a different role here. I’m glad he’s enjoying and performing really well for the team.
What has changed about him on and off the pitch?
I think he has improved a lot of areas in his game because he has more experience and he’s been working on them. What makes a difference is his attitude, his willingness and desire to win every single training session and every single ball and that’s what makes him the player that he is.
How important is an in form striker?
Top teams, need top scorers. Not just one, ideally three. When you have those players who can hit those numbers that gives you every chance to be on top of the table.
Has the start to the season impacted your transfer plans?
No. We are still in the same position. The market gives you a lot of information and something that maybe you expect you could you get, you are not getting, or the same with ins and outs. We are focusing on the players that we have now and want to get the best out of them.
With Cedric’s performance with the under-21s would the message be to players not getting much game time, to play with them and show that kind of right attitude?
100%. I think they’re three different cases. Marquinhos has been playing with the under-21s and we didn’t believe it was necessary for him to play again, Fabio and Emile have been injured, they haven’t had any minutes and they needed that exposure. With Cedric it was a case of giving him exposure. He wasn’t in the squad last week, he hasn’t played many minutes in pre-season and we wanted to give an opportunity for them. He said straight away that he wanted to play and you can see the attitude that he had.
When do you start looking at the league table?
After 10 or 12 games. That’s when you start to understand where you are because the schedule and fixtures are going to have a big part on that. I don’t start paying attention properly till April or March, that’s when it really starts to matter.
Does it have to be the right player for the transfers or you won’t make any?
Has to be the right person and has to be the right player. We only want to bring top quality through that door. If not it’s not worth it.
Will you be happy with this squad if the right player doesn’t come in?
I will be totally happy and focused on getting the best out of those players that’s for sure.
Is there any update on Nice’s interest in Nicolas Pepe?
What we can communicate we always do when it’s the right moment. We discussed that we have a big squad and we’ve made some decisions and allowed some players to leave. Until the end of the window it’s possible that anything can happen with any player.
Would another loan be good for Ainsley Maitland-Niles?
We are addressing those things internally.
Is there any update on Hector Bellerin?
Not at the moment. No update and it’s like the other situations at the moment.
How proud are you Granit Xhaka with how he’s turned things around because he seems like a leader without the armband?
You describe it well. He doesn’t need the armband to be one of the leaders, it’s his personality and the way that he approaches his profession that makes him a special player. I think it’s very important for the team, he’s showing that. What we need from him is that he performs well or even better and that’s the aim.
He’s said that he wants to have open training sessions to allow the fans to see how hard you work. Would you be interested in that?
I think anything that brings us closer to our supporters we have to do it. The club is looking into that.
What do you remember from your first game against Bournemouth?
It was raining, I got very wet! I was excited, nervous and very much looking forward to what was coming but it feels a long time ago.
How have you changed as a manager since then?
Very much, I think. I think the team and the club need a certain person in each phase and in each moment. The coach or the manager that the club needed a year ago is different to what it needs today. You have to constantly be evolving, now we have to thrive, this club at a different speed and before we had to have a lot of protection to keep us in the right place and not fall apart. This is evolving. We as individuals, especially the people who have a lot of decision-making and need to inspire others, have to evolve and change as well.
Is this now a Mikel Arteta team?
It was from the first day because I made the decision to come here and coach those players and I always felt they were our players. We always tried to get the best out of them, help them and try to improve them. Obviously when you then recruit you want to recruit alongside the club the players who you can feel can make the difference.
Ramsdale also played that day, there’s been a bit of criticism this season. Have you had to put an arm around him?
I think Aaron has been pretty good at the start of the season. You have seen that in a very specific moment (in the documentary) but if you put the cameras on someone when they make a mistake, they feel, they hurt it takes a few days to swallow. You can see the families as well, how much they suffer, it is good to see the players really care.
Fabio Vieira played on the right wing for the under-21s. How do you think he got on and is that position where he might play in the Premier League?
With Fabio his versatility is something that caught our eye and we believe he’s going to give us a lot of options. It’s about those units, how they work together and the type of players that Fabio needs around him to exploit his qualities. I think that relationship with Emile on that side can be very powerful. We’ll have to wait and see how that develops.
How has Marquinhos settled and will he stay?
Very happy with him. He’s adapted really well. He’s a really likeable figure in the dressing room and around Colney, even if his language is not great yet. I think his physicality has been pretty exceptional for someone who has come in from Brazil, a different way to train and the way he’s done it. I think he’s got very good qualities for the way we want to play.
We are going to keep him here for another few months and make sure he establishes himself at the club and in the team and after that we will see what is the best movement in terms of his development.
Could he feature in the Premier League yet?
For every player there is the option to play. If he trains and convinces that he has the level to do that, of course he’s going to have opportunities.
How confident are you over Saka’s contract?
I am very confident that we as a club and Bukayo, his family, his agent, everybody, we are very much aligned in what we want to achieve. And now it is about putting it on a piece of paper.
Is there an urgency to get that done now with the World Cup and a busy preseason?
I would like that to get done, because I don’t want the player or anybody distracted while we are in the middle of the season. But those things take time and they have to go through the right process, and I think the process has been really good.
In terms of player relationships on the pitch. You mentioned Emile and Fabio, is that a specific relationship you want to build, because they combined well and were swapping positions for the U21s. Is that where you’d see them playing off each other?
We want players that make each other better. In order to do that, first of all is the chemistry between those players, the understanding, the timing, the different qualities they need in order to get what we want done, and we are building those relationships. Fabio has been training with us for just a week so he needs to develop that. We need to see where he clicks and where he can make (a) big impact for the team, and we are looking at that.
Does that understanding improve the decision making and execution we talked about last week?
Yes. We need to continue developing that and being more unpredictable and a bigger threat every week.
You were at the Under-21s game vs Manchester United as well. Is the plan to go to as many of them as possible?
Especially when we have time, we want to be there, be close to them, give them support to Mehmet (Ali), the coaches and players. We need to build that connection between first team and academy and be very much in line of how we want to play, how we want to evolve our players and basically get the talent from there to the first team. That’s the aim we have as a club.
You have a much bigger squad than last year. How difficult will that be to manage?
I think the first three or four weeks of the competition are tricky because we’re only playing once a week, there’s no Europa (League), no cups, and we’re gonna have to manage the frustrations of players who sometimes are not even going to be in the squad. But it’s a long season and everybody will have their opportunities.
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