Sports
Arsenal’s Arteta hopes for fresh start after international break
Mikel Arteta believes the international break came at the right time for his Arsenal side as they try to overturn a dreadful start to the Premier League season.
A 5-0 hammering at champions Manchester City heading into the break left Arsenal bottom of the table with three defeats from their first three games and no goals scored.
Arteta’s side host fellow strugglers Norwich City today with the pressure growing on the Spaniard.
However, he believes the two-week pause has given him time to get players back from injury and bed in new signings.
“We needed some break to try and get players back. Hopefully by today, we will have a different team,” he told a news conference on Thursday.
“We have a completely different squad. It’s unheard of. Now we have to make it work, we have to glide it together, build relationships, chemistry and understanding. We have to do that really quickly.”
New signing Ben White is available for torday as are Gabriel Magalhaes, Eddie Nketiah and Thomas Partey, although Swiss midfielder Granit Xhaka is suspended following his sending off against Manchester City.
“I’m really looking forward to having everyone available and to try start the season the way we want,” Arteta said.
“We don’t want to use any excuses. We know how difficult the start was with injuries and Covid issues we had. We have to reset now. We need to get everybody back on track and start to win football games which is what we have to do”.
Should Arsenal lose to Norwich it would be the first time they have lost their first four games of a league campaign since 1923, while never in their history have they failed to score a goal in their opening four league games.
Arsenal fans are growing increasingly impatient but Arteta, who replaced fellow Spaniard Unai Emery in December 2019, said that there was a long-term project in place at Arsenal.
“We have tried to explain the project and the decisions that have been made over the last few months. The amount of changes in the past two years is almost 30 players,” he said.
“It’s a project that we believed in and we all take responsibility. Now we have to make it work.”
Whether he is allowed to continue leading the project will depend very much on Arsenal quickly climbing the table.
“The pressure is always there to be as high as possible in that league table. It’s down to us to provide everything we have,” added Arteta.
New Japanese defensive signing Takehiro Tomiyasu’s hopes of making his debut hinge on a work-permit.
“The club is working hard to try and achieve that in the next couple of hours,” Arteta said of the player signed for around 18 million pounds ($24.91 million) from Bologna. – Reuters
Black Stars captain Jordan Ayew says Ghana will leave nothing on the pitch when they face England in today’s World Cup Group L decider at Gillette Stadium.
With both teams on 3 points, Ayew said his job is to ease pressure on the younger players and hold everyone accountable, himself included.
“I’m doing my best to guide the boys, make them comfortable, take pressure off them, and help us perform,” Ayew told reporters. “I have to perform too. They have to perform too. It’s teamwork. We’re helping each other.”
Ghana come into the Foxborough clash after a 1-0 win over Panama in Toronto. England beat Croatia 4-2 in their opener.
The captain’s message was simple, “We’re going to give our 100% and we’re going to fight. I’ll make sure when we come off that pitch, we have no regrets.”
The winner takes control of Group L. Kickoff is 4:00 PM ET at Gillette Stadium.
By Edem Mensah-Tsotorme
Black Stars forward Brandon Thomas-Asante insists Ghana will carry no pressure into Tuesday’s World Cup showdown with England at Boston Stadium, saying the team’s self-belief and sense of purpose outweigh outside expectations.
Brandon provided a 95th minute assist that helped Ghana beat Panama 1-0 in Toronto.
The win left both Ghana and England level on three points in Group L following the Three Lions 4-2 over Croatia in their opening match.
Speaking to ghanafa.org Thomas-Asante is adamant that external doubt only fuels the squad.
“Everything to the best ability, it’s very much a case of we back ourselves, we believe in ourselves. Whether people on the outside doubt us, believe us, or anything that’s not what we think about. We think about why we’re here. We’re on a mission,” Thomas-Asante said.
The Coventry City forward said that mission removes any weight of expectation. “That means there’s no pressure. It’s even less pressure for us,” he explained.
“We know our fans believe, but we know that some people might want to overlook us. We use that to our advantage preparing properly and believing that we can go and do something,” He added.
England and Ghana both sit on three points heading into the Foxborough clash, with the winner set to take control of Group L. Kickoff at Boston Stadium on Tuesday.
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