EXCLUSIVE: Mikel Arteta ‘clearly learned’ from David Moyes and Arsene Wenger

Mikel Arteta has transformed the once soft Arsenal side he inherited into a formidable, streetwise team that is getting under the skin of serial champions Manchester City.

While a seven-point lead seemed substantial at this early stage of the season, a one-point gap would have been enormous.

Now, following a draw against Liverpool on Sunday, Arsenal find themselves just four points ahead, leaving Manchester City as the real winners.

For Arsenal, this match was a case of what might have been.

Without William Saliba, they were immediately on the back foot.

However, Bukayo Saka’s return proved to be worth the wait, as his goal showcased the best of Arsenal and the best of Saka.

Yet, the battle against injuries is becoming increasingly unwinnable for them.

The absence of Saliba is a significant blow, and losing Jurrien Timber adds to their woes.

As the fixture list becomes more demanding, could this situation become a turning point for Arsenal, and not in a positive way?

Despite this, Arsenal have yet to hit their stride this season.

They lacked the quality to capitalise on their opportunities against Liverpool in the first half when they had the upper hand.

What Mikel Arteta’s side does possess, however, is heart.

They are capable of fighting through matches to stay competitive.

On the other hand, Liverpool also fell short of seizing the game, resulting in a draw that both teams will accept, although it could have yielded more.

Daily Cannon’s Dan Critchlow offers insights on Mikel Arteta’s impact at Arsenal and the club’s prospects for winning the Premier League this season.

What do you make of Arsenal’s start to the new season?

Dan Critchlow: Arsenal have made a decent start to the season given a run of very difficult fixtures. Travelling away to Aston Villa, Tottenham Hotspur, and Manchester City is never easy, so to get seven points from those games was excellent. The Champions League results have also been positive.

Results haven’t been quite so good recently.

Mikel Arteta definitely would have hoped for a win against Bournemouth, and ideally you want to be beating a title rival like Liverpool in the home fixture. The Shakhtar game earlier in the week was also a disappointing performance.

Martin Odegaard and Bukayo Saka have been big misses, as was William Saliba on Sunday.

Those are three of the team’s best players, so only having one of three available for each of the last three games has made things difficult. With any luck, performances will improve when they’re all back at 100%.

What a thrilling match we witnessed on Sunday between Arsenal and Liverpool! Did Mikel Arteta’s side drop two crucial points, or was the result fair for both teams?

Dan Critchlow: I think the result was ultimately a fair one, because Arsenal seemed to be far the better team in the first half, but Liverpool really stepped up and took control in the second half. The goals were also quite similar, with both teams scoring from a breakaway long ball and a set-piece.

The injuries to Jurrien Timber and Gabriel Magalhaes didn’t help. Arteta clearly respects Mohamed Salah as one of the best players in the league, and those two were key to his attempts to shut the winger down. Without them, it seemed inevitable he’d score, and so it proved.

Arsenal could have had a penalty, but Kai Havertz still had the chance to convert a couple of seconds later.

Ultimately, Arsenal have to take responsibility for a game they definitely could have won, whilst also respecting that Liverpool put in a very strong second-half performance to earn their point.

Injuries are piling up for Arsenal, and with matches coming thick and fast, what strategies would you recommend for Arteta to keep Arsenal competitive and secure vital results? Currently, they sit five points behind Manchester City.

Dan Critchlow: The most obvious change Arteta could make is to put a little more faith in Ethan Nwaneri, who has been excellent in his cameo appearances. That would help to balance the midfield a bit more in Odegaard’s absence and free up Thomas Partey to rotate with Ben White at right-back. Arsenal really need to avoid overplaying White given his recent injury, as another setback could be disastrous with Takehiro Tomiyasu and Timber already out. 

Other than that, it’s going to be a case of just trying to grind out results by any means possible until the November break, when hopefully the squad will start to be a lot closer to full strength.

Mikel Arteta has been branded the new Mourinho. Do you agree with this assertion?

Dan Critchlow: Arteta takes inspiration from lots of coaches, one of the biggest misrepresentations of his coaching style for the first few years of his Arsenal spell was that he was just trying to be Pep Guardiola 2.0.

He clearly learned a lot from David Moyes during his time at Everton, and from Arsene Wenger during his playing career at Arsenal. And yes, there’s probably a bit of Mourinho in there too.

I don’t think Arsenal’s football in general is anything like Mourinho’s, but the team are certainly capable of dropping off and shutting up shop – at least when they keep 11 players on the pitch and everyone is fit.

Arteta isn’t ashamed to play in any particular way. For example, his focus on set-pieces with Nicolas Jover has been a big boost for the team. It was an area Arsenal seemed to dismiss previously, but you can see the benefits of being open to that improvement.

Believing that a certain style of play is beneath your team is only going to hurt you as a manager.

Lastly, do you believe this is Arsenal’s year to claim the Premier League title?

Dan Critchlow: It’s hard to feel that way right now, sitting in third place behind two of the best teams in the league for the last decade.

But at full strength, Arsenal definitely have a shot, and getting some tricky fixtures out of the way early could help the team to make a run later on.

If Arteta can get Arsenal through the upcoming away games against Newcastle and Chelsea with a couple of good results, the next two or three months look a lot more straightforward. A strong run could give the side a real chance of being in touch at the top by the time Manchester City visit the Emirates in February. Then a win in that game and I’d really believe.

Thanks to Dan Critchlow for his overview of Mikel Arteta’s impact at Arsenal. You can follow Dan on X, @afcDW

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