Mikel Arteta has said he feels sympathy for Pep Guardiola after Manchester City’s poor run of results but said dealing with setbacks is part of being a manager.
City will attempt to record a first win in seven matches when they face the leaders, Liverpool, on Sunday, with Arsenal having the opportunity to close their deficit to Arne Slot’s side to six points at West Ham 24 hours earlier, after impressive wins over Nottingham Forest and Sporting this week. Arteta expressed concern for Guardiola’s wellbeing after City surrendered a three-goal lead against Feyenoord in midweek but said he expected their rivals to rediscover their form after such a sustained period of success.
“That is something very personal, but I feel a lot of sympathy for all my colleagues because I know the job, I know how ruthless this industry is,” Arteta said. “I know how we get judged just by one thing, which is results, regardless that you have done exactly the same thing and the outcome becomes different. We have to deal with that. I know how difficult it is because personally I have been through that a lot and every defeat is obviously super-painful. And that’s it. Then just put some perspective into it like we always do and move on, because there is always another game.”
Arteta, who is waiting to see whether Gabriel Magalhães is fit to face West Ham on Saturday evening after the defender limped out of the 5-1 win at Sporting, said of City: “What people have to talk about [is] how difficult it is what they have done for nine years consistently. And yeah, a bump, everybody has a bump. For them, it is very strange because in nine years they never had it. But that tells you as well the level and the environment that we are in, that everything has to go almost perfect. Performance has to be perfect, availability of your squad has to be perfect, things have to go your way and the opposition, the level is different, and it’s so hard to win.”
Victory for Liverpool over City on Sunday would take them 11 points clear of the champions with just over a third of the season completed. But Arteta, having been top for almost 250 days before being overhauled by Guardiola’s side two seasons ago, warned that it would not be easy for them to maintain that momentum for the whole campaign.
“We’ve been there and to sustain it for 10 months is extremely difficult – everything has to go your way,” he said. “Just when you think you have it, plop! Everything collapses. Results can change through injuries, decisions and it can happen at any moment. You have to be ready for that but it’s something you can’t always control. All you can control is to do our very best.”
Asked whether Arsenal had the best-equipped squad to reel Liverpool in, he said: “I really believe in my team, yes.”
