Mikel Arteta hits back at Arsenal quality critique as 'evolution' predicted | OneFootball

Gunners boss refused to apologise for uninspiring performances as quadruple still within reach

Mikel Arteta dismissed the idea Arsenal are outliers in how they approach matches, insisting football has evolved across Europe and will continue to do so.

Arsenal's next four matches are all in different competitions, with the next week offering an opportunity to end their trophy drought in the Carabao Cup and also book their place in the Champions League quarter-finals.

Arteta's side have continued to pick up results without being entirely convincing in attack, grinding out wins, and the Arsenal manager made no apologies for doing so.

"It's playing the best football that you possibly can and the game demands to give you the best possibility to win the game and that's it," Arteta said.

"I realised what's happening in the Premier League the other day with a really important factor. I was watching the Champions League game between Newcastle and Barcelona.

"For me, Barcelona are the most exciting team in Europe in many moments the way they play, and they face one of the Premier League teams, Newcastle, who are exceptional in the intensity and the high pressure, everything, man-to-man, a huge amount of tools, a really good team in transition.

"We saw a completely different game I've never seen Barcelona play and that's a huge credit to Newcastle, but this is the league that we are playing in. Have you seen the Barcelona 1,000 passes that every week does it in Spain? No.

"It was a very different kind of game. Can it be beautiful? Yes. But Newcastle made that game so well done as well, and a huge credit in the way they did it."

Arteta emphasised that is unlikely to change any time soon and that people had to adapt to the shift in focus.

"This is the reality and if you don't want to see it, it's because probably we have to change the glasses of perspective that we see the game because this is the reality of our league right now," Arteta said.

The Spaniard was also asked about the success teams, including Arsenal, have had with inswinging corners and whether that has become almost too powerful.

Arteta insisted set-pieces could be changed with rules, but that man-to-man marking across the pitch was the biggest influence on how matches are now played.

"That's why they add the rules for the long throws," Arteta said.

"We don't want to see long throws - it's very simple, give four seconds for the long throws and it's finished.

"But the biggest issue is the man-to-man, believe me. All the managers have to agree, you cannot defend man-to-man and tomorrow you're going to have a different league, I guarantee you. A different league."

No side in the Premier League have scored more goals from set-pieces than Arsenal this season.

Arteta is not surprised that teams are now putting a particular emphasis on those situations, and dismissed any suggestion that teams were wrong to try and maximise them.

"It's like putting information in the best laptop every day and gathering what you do so well, I'm going to try to replicate it the same, the same, the same," Arteta said.

"So this is moving so, so fast. Unlike in any other sport. I mean when you go to the best tennis players and the best tournaments, it's like saying ‘no, the serve, you cannot ace with the serve, it's not allowed.’ It is allowed, and it's a great way to win a championship.

"In NBA saying ‘no, it's three [points], you cannot shoot from three’. No, no, everybody's doing it and everybody's doing better and better because it's more effective and it will keep evolving."