European nights return to N5 as Arsenal gear up to face Paris Saint-Germain on match day two of the UEFA Champions League this Tuesday evening. Gunners manager, Mikel Arteta, addressed the media at Sobha Realty Training Centre ahead of the clash with the French giants.
First providing a fitness update on his side set to face PSG, Arteta confirmed ‘there is no news’ for Tuesday’s clash. He then elaborated ‘we have a training session this afternoon and we have to review a few players, but overall, especially [anyone] returning, there’s nothing to give back.’
Riccardo Calafiori was rumoured to have sustained a knee injury in Arsenal’s Premier League encounter with Leicester City on Saturday, as sources circulated some whispers of the Italian’s potential injury. Putting those rumours to bed, Arteta confirmed that the defender, as well as Ben White, ‘are both in contention’ for the meeting with PSG.
Embed from Getty Images‘So pleased’ with the Gunners over recent weeks
Arsenal only just caught their breath at Emirates Stadium on Saturday afternoon, as Premier League returnees Leicester City tested the Gunners until the death before Leandro Trossard salvaged the title contenders in the 94th minute. On top of the late comeback, the Gunners have had a difficult run in recent weeks, having followed up the North London derby with a gritty 10-men battle against Manchester City at the Etihad.
Speaking on how Arsenal have deployed different playing styles across recent encounters, Arteta says he has been ‘so pleased with the team’. He continued, ‘We’ve had some very different ones! We ended up having to play a very different game in the second half against Man City, and in the end we lost two points in the last minute. We did completely the opposite playing against a low block like we did against City and with different challenges, but watching the game back, the amount of things that we generated, I was so pleased with the team.’
Arteta ‘a huge admirer’ of Luis Enrique
Paris Saint-Germain are no stranger to a European night under the lights, and Luis Enrique’s side will now return with great intent having commenced their 2024/25 Champions League journey with a 1-0 victory over Girona on match day one. Speaking on Luis Enrique, Arteta expressed that he has ‘a huge smile on my face’ when reflecting on the PSG manager, and is ‘a huge admirer of him.’
Arteta continued, ‘[Enrique is] an unbelievable personality, huge character, huge energy, always very supportive with young players. What I love about him is wherever he’s been, as a player or a manager, his fingerprints are all over the place. You can sense it’s his team the way his players behave, the way they want to attack and dominate games. The spirit, the energy they have, he has this unbelievable power with all the clubs he’s been at, with the Spain national team. And then his approach to life, to his profession – it’s something to really look at and I learnt a lot of things from him.’
As the Gunners prepare for a heavy task in N5, Arteta reviewed PSG as a ‘really tough opposition’. The Arsenal boss elaborated ‘They are exceptional and they dominate every phase of play. They have a very clear intention of how they want to dominate the game through the ball and when they don’t have it, they want it straight back. They are really aggressive with it and they confront you.’
High praise for Timber and Calafiori
Embed from Getty ImagesJurrien Timber and Riccardo Calafiori have flexed their muscles as of late, having both chipped their way into the starting eleven across recent fixtures for the Gunners. Speaking on the talent that they respectively bring to the side, Arteta expressed ‘We missed Jurrien for 11 months and Riccy wasn’t here. They are two players that have a football brain, the intelligence, the quality and adaptability to occupy different spaces whether attacking or defending. That gives the team a different dynamic and makes it unpredictable for the opponent to defend certain ways. Both are huge personalities too which I love.’
Timber faced a difficult introduction to North London, having ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) after signing from Ajax in the summer of 2023. Since returning, the Dutch defender has proved his worth routinely, having become a real asset for the Gunners across recent vital victories. Packing on the praise for Timber’s character, Arteta expressed ‘He’s a leader, a guy that is constantly thinking: ‘how can I help others?’
The Arsenal boss then continued, ‘He’s brought unbelievable commitment to everything he does, in the time he’s been with us, especially the amount of time he spent off the pitch. For everybody to speak so highly of him, to respect him and look at him in the way that they do will tell you the story of the personality we have in that team.’
Making one final comment on tomorrow’s all-important meeting with PSG at Emirates Stadium, Arteta expressed ‘We’re looking forward to it. These are the kind of nights that we want to experience and want to have against an unbelievable opponent. We’re just ready for it.’
Arsenal go head-to-head with Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday evening at Emirates Stadium, with proceedings set to head underway at 20:00 BST.
