Mikel Arteta paid tribute to his Arsenal players after they mounted a comeback to beat Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League on Sunday.
The Gunners took the points in the 2-1 win thanks to one goal from Martin Odegaard and Alexandre Lacazette’s penalty, but they both came after Erik Lamela had given Spurs a memorable lead despite the home side dominating most of the opening exchanges and striking the woodwork minutes either side of that opening goal.
Arteta acknowledged the difficulty of falling behind against Arsenal’s rivals, given their capabilities on the counter-attack, and said his players’ efforts were entirely to thank for the win - even if the latter stages of the game, with Spurs down to 10 men, were nerve-wracking.
“Full credit to them the way they did it today. It was incredible, going to 1-0 down after the way they were playing and it’s the worst scenario against a team like Spurs,” the Gunners’ boss said to Sky Sports.
“We prepare the game trying to exploit some areas and we had some strong individual performances.
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“The last 10 [minutes] were the worst we played, it’s one of the things we have to improve as a team.
“This is football, it’s about how you react. This team has shown recently they’re not going to give up, they keep believing and trying. We create chances and we were rewarded for that.”
With captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang left out of the line-up for disciplinary reasons, Arteta was asked post-match about the reasons for his absence.
The manager stayed quiet on the specifics, but explained that all players must abide by the code of the dressing room.
“We have a way of living together, we have to respect each other, that’s it. He’s our captain, these things happen, we move forward.”
