Arteta thrilled as Arsenal lift Emirates Cup with victory over Lyon
LONDON, ENGLAND - AUGUST 11: William Saliba of Arsenal celebrates scoring his teams first goal during the Pre-Season Friendly match between Arsenal FC and Olympique Lyonnais at Emirates Stadium on August 11, 2024 in London, England. (Photo by Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
Arsenal clinched the pre-season Emirates Cup tourney as the Gunners overpowered French giant, Lyon, in the winner takes-all-encounter.
Speaking after the game, the club’s head coach, Mikel Arteta, expressed delight with his team’s performance in scorching conditions at Emirates Stadium on Sunday.
Despite the heat, the Gunners buried the game by a 2-0 lead in the first half-hour, thanks to headers from William Saliba and Gabriel.
Speaking with Arsenal.com, Arteta said, “It was a tough test with some challenging conditions, especially because of the heat, but I thought the team started brilliantly,” Mikel reflected. “In the first 30-35 minutes, we were incredible.
“We should have scored many more goals, we left the game a bit open with the score being 2-0 but, in the end, I’m really pleased collectively and individually and I think we looked really good.”
Both headers were scored courtesy of Declan Rice corners, something that will undoubtedly have pleased set piece coach Nicolas Jover.
“Yes, for sure,” Mikel agreed. “It’s something that we obviously practise, we generated a lot of set-pieces today and it’s another way of scoring. We should have scored many goals in open play as well, but today we lacked the sparkle or quality in the final touch and final pass.”
Gooners were treated to a debut from summer signing Riccardo Calafiori, who entered the fray during the second half.
“We are managing them, it’s a lot of new things for him,” Mikel explained. “It’s a big step up, but he’s so willing as you could see, for the 20 minutes that he played, he’s so energetic, so passionate, a really intelligent player. He’s going to give us a lot.”
Asked about how pre-season has gone overall, from California and Pennsylvania to north London, the boss was in high spirits.
“We had four or five different groups, so it’s been quite challenging, in terms of the schedule for everybody and playing everybody,” he said. “But the staff have put some unbelievable work [in], I think the club has as well in the way that they have organised all the games and the tour.
“Thank you everybody for the contribution and I think overall it’s a really positive pre-season for us.”
