Mikel Arteta Refuses To Blame The Pressure Of The Title Race On Arsenal’s Draw With West Ham
Arsenal threw away a two-goal lead for the second league game in a row as their title chances took another hit in a 2-2 draw at West Ham; Mikel Arteta: “When I see a team playing with that flow [at the start of the game], that’s not pressure.”
Mikel Arteta refused to blame the pressure of the title race on Arsenal throwing away a 2-0 lead at West Ham as Man City tightened their grip on the main prize.
Arsenal were awarded a penalty at 2-1 up just after half-time for Michail Antonio’s handball, only for Bukayo Saka to uncharacteristically put his effort wide. That proved even more costly when West Ham equalised two minutes later through Jarrod Bowen’s smart finish.
When asked if the pressure was getting to his side, who have now dropped points in their last two games, Arteta said: “When I see a team playing with that flow [at the start of the game], that’s not pressure. At 2-0 we were not under pressure. We just didn’t do what the game required in that moment.
“We could not control what West Ham was proposing [after the first goal]. If you concede two or three goals away from home, it is very difficult to win football matches. We have to blame ourselves with how we played in our boxes.
