Arsenal are struggling to replicate their superb away form at the Emirates Stadium because they often fail to control their emotions, according to Mikel Arteta.
The Gunners travel to Bournemouth on Saturday looking to win their opening three away games in a Premier League season for the first time in a decade.
Arsenal have excelled on the road under Arteta and last season had the best away record in the top flight. It was a different story at home, though, with the Gunners having a worse record than both Manchester City and Manchester United.
Their struggles have continued this season and Arsenal have dropped four points in their opening four home league games.
Asked if their mixed form is down to becoming too emotionally charged, Arteta admitted: “At times we are. We want to attack too fast.
“In football in general we are not going to change our approach in terms of how we want to win the ball back. And we are a very, very aggressive team and we are not going to change that. It is about having the ability to change gears.
“We can not play with those gears all the time when we have the ball and we don’t have. We have to play at different paces and the game requires a different pace in relation to the behaviour of the opponent. Are they waiting for you? Are they jumping? Are they being aggressive? Are they not? Where are the spaces? And we have to manage that a bit better.
“It comes down to many factors, not just one. Especially at home we have a lot of individual errors leading to goals and that has caused us some problems - away from home we have not had that.
“It is true that away from home I think that approach is very different from opponents, but it is something that we have to turn around quickly as if we want the consistency in results, especially at home, it is something that we need to change that is for sure.”
Arsenal are currently unbeaten this season and if they avoid defeat at Bournemouth it will be the first time since 2007 they have remained so over their opening seven league fixtures.
But the Gunners are sweating on a number of injuries, including Bukayo Saka - who has a foot problem.
If Saka does not play it will end a run of 86 consecutive league appearances, a club record for Arsenal in the Premier League era, and Arteta has hailed his ability to avoid picking up knocks.
He noted: “I think with experience he is recognising those situations where he could be injured much better and is exposing his body much less, in the final seconds before the action actually happens, and that is something we are working on to protect his physique.
“It is not a coincidence. Your team sometimes plays to you what I call ‘hospital balls’ - they give you a ball that can send you to hospital.
“They should not play those balls in those situations, but sometimes it is the fault of the player passing the ball and sometimes the fault of the player receiving it, because it is a lack of activity in the final seconds that exposes you.”
