Good morning to everybody.
My morning routine has been disrupted by Twitter blocking access to third-party apps, like Tweetbot, which I use…well. used on my Mac. It was a clutter-free and ad-free experience, so every morning I would get up, scan the timeline and see if there was any news on Arsenal. Now, I have to look at the abomination of a website to see if I can figure out if it’s chronological or just algorithmic nonsense, while blocking ads for ‘Captain Fascist’s Crypto NFT podcast’. Couldn’t that Egon guy have just made the terrible exploding cars out of him?
Yuck.
Anyway, Mikel Arteta met with the press yesterday before the North London derby and while it was generally somewhat bland, there were a few moments to comment. One was when he was asked if he was paying attention to Mykhaylo Mudryk’s Instagram. I don’t know what the winger has done now, but I imagine he has posted something wearing every Arsenal shirt there has ever been, presenting himself as a cat in heat and photoshopping himself into the new stadium artwork.
Arteta, as you can imagine, didn’t say much, but his face told a different story, as you can see in this morning’s blog image. It was a classic of the genre ‘I know something and you know that I know something but I don’t tell you what that something is even though everyone already knows it’.
There are reports that Edu has flown to Warsaw, where Shakhtar Donetsk is training, to complete the deal after making progress in negotiations. Obviously nothing will happen in time for the derby, but maybe he will be available for the two games against Man Utd and Man City.
Speaking generally about business in January, Arteta said:
We can’t talk about other players. There is some interest in the things we would like to do to improve the team, because we are a little short in certain areas with the injuries. We are trying as a club, we are determined to try to improve the team in each window and that is what we are trying to do.
There was also an update on Gabriel Jesus about whom the manager said:
I’d like to see it very quickly, but I don’t think that’s going to happen. We’re going to have to be patient with that. With every surgery there are always many things to be very careful about, especially in the first few weeks. He’s going to put pressure on everyone to be on the field very soon, but we also have to be cautious.
This is the second time that Arteta talks about Jesus in a way that sounds like he’s been gone for a while yet. A couple of days ago, the player posted an Instagram update saying ‘5 weeks’, which is pretty much where we thought we’d be, so I wonder if the manager is deliberately downplaying that? We know he doesn’t like to reveal anything when it comes to injured players and when they might return. Perhaps he’s being cautious, because we know there are possible hiccups, but double-talking about how long this is going to last makes me think he’s tempering expectations in the hope that an earlier return will provide some momentum. I guess we’ll find out in due time.
The other big question from the press conference was the FA charge after the Oxford game which followed the Newcastle game. I was wondering how I could deal with this, and he went the “No Comment” route a lot. Which I understand. If you talk too much about it, it could further increase the focus of attention. He was asked if he had spoken to the players and said:
Whatever we can do to improve, we will always have a conversation with our players, with the staff and with the club as well to see what we can do and what we have to change in the game.
A perfect response before a match in which the atmosphere will be intense and there will surely be moments that trigger a reaction on the pitch and on the sidelines. It was fun to hear Antonio Conte’s response when he was asked about the same thing. He said:
I think intimidating or creating a bad environment is not fair. I don’t like this. I hate people who try to do it. Do not forget that we are always talking about a football game. We have to respect each other.
And of course there is nothing wrong with what he said verbatim, but after a long career in management, with many controversial incidents on the sidelines and behind the scenes, there is an element of people in greenhouses and all. that. A north London derby needs little outside help to turn up the heat, but I think this will be one where Arteta and the Arsenal players are under the microscope like never before.
Right, that’s all for now. Join us on Patreon a bit later this morning where Lewis and I will be recording the North London Derby preview podcast. Have a great Saturday, and here’s to a great Manchester derby with plenty of goals, red cards and hamstring strains.
