Arsenal win secures Arteta’s first victory in charge

Goals from Nicolas Pépé and Sokratis Papastathopoulos secured new Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta’s first win in charge at the Emirates over Manchester United late last night.

The Spaniard spent three years under the tutelage of Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola, heralded by many as the greatest football manager ever, after retiring as a player at Arsenal in 2016.

The three points have given Arsenal much more of a cushion, now just one more win from 6th placed Tottenham, though they are still closer in points to the relegation zone than they are to those much-coveted Champion’s League places.

Arteta commented after the game that he could see things improving over his first two matches in charge, but “today was perfect, new year, new opportunity against a big club”. 

Signs of the attacking intent and new philosophy that he will look to try to bring to the club were there even before kick-off.  

With the inclusion of Uruguayan Lucas Toerreira, who sat behind the two font men Lacazette and Aubamayang, the Gunners could play a high press that United struggled to cope with.

The fans will be thrilled with the new manager and these early signs of progress. But they must be cautioned against getting over excited, this may have been a huge scalp for the new man in charge, but it’s only one game.

Photo credit: Action Images via Reuters | John Sibley