Mikel Arteta Arsenal
Newcastle United players had the music pumping after their 1-0 victory over Arsenal as they celebrated one of the biggest wins of the Eddie Howe era. Just a year ago, Arsenal’s shouts could be heard down the tunnel as they watched a replay of Joe Willock keeping the ball in play before Anthony Gordon scored. This time, however, there was nothing but silent contemplation from the Gunners, as Newcastle’s win was indisputable following a fair and square play. Alexander Isak’s header proved sufficient to hand the Spaniard’s team a bruising defeat.
Reflecting on the match,
Mikel Arteta said “Unfortunately, we didn’t because I don’t think we played our best game. But we have to stick together and be ready for next week. Maybe we deserved a point but I do not think we deserved to win today. They had one chance and they scored. We were on top trying to equalise but I think we have to do better. When you lose, there’s not a lot of positive things but it’s OK, we don’t have to be so sad. We expect every opponent has their qualities and characteristics and they’re really good at what they do.”
There was a notable altercation during the game when Newcastle’s assistant manager, Jason Tindall, and Mikel Arteta had to be separated as tensions ran high. Sean Longstaff and Fabian Schar cleverly stopped a counter-attack, leading to a heated exchange of words between Arteta and Tindall in the technical area. Throughout the afternoon, Arteta was in constant disagreement with the officials, at one point giving a death stare when Joelinton committed a foul. By the end of the match, Arteta could only hide his face, as Eddie Howe and Tindall approached for the post-match handshake—a gesture acknowledging that the best team had won, leaving Arteta with no grounds for complaint.
Lewis Hall, previously criticized for his defensive work, delivered an impressive performance against Arsenal, earning him the man of the match title in the eyes of many due to his defensive prowess. One significant achievement was a critical block against Mikel Merino in the first half, followed by a line clearance in the second half to thwart Leandro Trossard’s attempt. His outstanding defensive contributions included seven clearances, four tackles, and two blocked shots. Reflecting on the match,
Lewis Hall said, “Arsenal will have been watching Newcastle’s crossing closely and were clearly caught by surprise from the first time cross. Great cross.”
