Are you expecting an easy game?
No, in the first match against them they showed us their capacity. Also every Portuguese team they are very organised. They have good players and good coaches from Portugal. They are very good coaches.
We are thinking after the first result there - 3-2 - we know them and here it is going to be more difficult than at home.
Why have you left Xhaka out?
Again we can do one more step with him. He is not today here, but also I think we need time with him and first protect him also to be calm and training with us every day.
But I was speaking with him this morning and also I decided he is not one of the captains in our group. I decided that and I told him this morning.
What was Granit's response? Who is captain now?
He accepted my decision. And also I told the other captains the decision. We need to carry on and focus for tomorrow's match and next Saturday's match. I needed to make a decision and now it is closed.
Will Xhaka play for Arsenal again?
The future is Arsenal's club future with the players we are here and the coaches we are here. We have a very important match for us tomorrow in the Europa League and then on Saturday in that way we need to take some decisions about some circumstances that have happened.
I say to you what is about Xhaka but now is about the match for tomorrow, [that is] only my focus and our focus is tomorrow. We need time, he is one of our players and we want to respect and protect him and also continue in our way. At the moment he is not in the group but my decision is as I say to you.
Tomorrow's match is now the focus and the most important. We have a lot of work to do to improve, to take confidence. We were speaking also the team this morning about our moment and speaking about our match tomorrow, our match on Saturday.
Really expecting to play and looking for what to see the team tomorrow and how we can respond against Vitoria away. That competition for us is very important. If we win tomorrow we are going to be the first in the table, it's our target in this group. Then we'll do something important in this competition.
Why was he stripped of the captaincy?
I think it's closed, that issue.
Will you hold another vote for captain?
We have now Aubameyang, Hector, Lacazette and Ozil. They are the four captains and the first now is Aubameyang.
Has Xhaka asked to leave?
We are speaking a lot about that and it's clear there are not more words about that. The decision I took I told him and I told the other captains and now it's continuing. Then the time is giving us the next matches, the next weeks and months how we can continue with every player and with him also. But now the focus is tomorrow.
He's not here we are other players and it's very important I respect a lot this competition and this Vitoria team. We have Saturday another important match and our focus is only the two matches.
I think I want to say to you, my decision I told them, first Xhaka and then the captains and for me it's finished. After his future with us is coming for the next weeks or the next months. Now we need to focussed for tomorrow.
