Arsenal coach, Mikel Arteta, announced that his team should focus on achieving the English Premier League title, which has been absent from the club’s coffers for 19 years.
The coach’s remarks came following the “Gunners” were eliminated from the European League championship following they tied, yesterday, Thursday, 1-1 with their Alex Reed, “Sporting Lisbon” in London, in the second leg of the round of sixteen of the European League, to tie 3-3 on aggregate, first and return matches, before the Portuguese club qualified. to the quarter-finals by winning 5-3 on penalties.
Arsenal have been eliminated from all three cup competitions in which they participated this season, but they are five points clear at the top of the Premier League and are seeking to win their first league titles since 2004.
There are only 11 matches left for the London club, starting with the visit to Crystal Palace next Sunday.
“It’s a big blow, but it brings clarity to the season,” Arteta told Arsenal’s website. “We have 11 Premier League games left and a grand final once morest Crystal Palace. We have to focus on that, we have to have energy there and learn from tonight.”
And he added: “We have to learn from our match (with Sporting Lisbon), but the best thing now is to react, show the same commitment, more quality and play better once morest Palace to beat them.”
Arteta suffered a double blow in that match when Takehiro Tomiyasu was substituted early and fellow defender William Saliba left the field shortly following.
“Tomiyasu’s injury seems very serious, given his reaction immediately following the injury and what he told me,” Arteta told reporters.
“Obviously it’s too early and it’s hard to know what’s going on. William, I don’t know. He was feeling a bit uncomfortable and mightn’t go on, so we had to replace him.”
