Mikel Arteta likened playing Leeds United to going to see a dentist as his Arsenal side made it through to the FA Cup fourth round by the skin of their teeth on Monday night.
The Gunners beat their Championship opponents 1-0 at the Emirates Stadium courtesy of Reiss Nelson's strike in the early stages of the second half.
The hosts had been indebted to some solid saves from goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez as well as poor finishing from Marcelo Bielsa's side - who are favourites to earn promotion to the Premier League this season - go in at half-time level at 0-0.
Nelson's strike then won the game for them, with Arteta's side now heading to fellow Premier League outfit Bournemouth in the fourth round.
"Now I'm really pleased but we saw two different teams from the first to second half,” Arteta told reporters after the match, which represented a second straight victory for the Gunners.
“I tried to tell them exactly what they were going to face and after 32 minutes we had won one duel, I think. We changed our attitude, desire and organisation at half-time and then we were completely different.
"They had to experience how hard and tough it was going to be.
“I watched a lot of Leeds games and they battered every team every three days. It was good for my players to learn and to suffer on the pitch.
"Thank God, I wasn’t happy at all [after the first half]. If you’re not ready for Leeds, you’ll get exposed.
“To play against Leeds is like going to the dentist. They are a great team and what they’ve built is powerful.
“When I see what I don’t want to see, I cannot be happy and I have to let them know.”
