Arteta is dissatisfied with Arsenal's victory over Wolves

In the post-match press conference after the Premier League round 16 clash with Wolves, coach Arteta acknowledged that he was a bit unsatisfied, even though Arsenal secured the win in the end.

Arsenal entered this round as the Premier League leaders, carrying the mindset of genuine title contenders. Facing Wolves, who are struggling at the bottom of the league table, many expected Mikel Arteta’s team to claim an easy victory to continue their march towards the championship. However, the reality on the Emirates pitch was far more complicated and tense than initially anticipated.

For over 70 minutes, Arsenal dominated possession, controlled the game, and constantly pressured their opponents, but what they lacked was sharpness in the final touches. Wolves defended deep, disciplined, and waited for counterattack opportunities, while Arteta’s players struggled to break through the well-organized defense of their visitors. Only thanks to two consecutive own goals by Wolves late in the match did Arsenal manage to secure all three points in a game where they never truly felt “completely dominant” as expected.

After the match, coach Mikel Arteta did not hide his relief, but he also showed clear dissatisfaction with the team’s performance. Speaking about the atmosphere in the locker room, the Spanish tactician openly admitted the issues Arsenal needed to address:

“It was a feeling of relief, but at the same time it was very clear that the margin should have been bigger. In the first half, we lacked precision despite creating many chances inside the opponent’s box, and too often we failed to pass accurately to teammates. We had numerical superiority in those situations but didn’t capitalize. In the second half, we had to improve on this and I think the team did. We created more chances, scored a goal, but then there was a two to three minute period where we retreated too deep, completely passive, with very poor defensive habits. That was totally unacceptable, especially since the opponent hadn’t had a single shot before that. The first time they got a chance, they scored, and that’s the Premier League. Unfortunately, we could only breathe easier because we scored late and won, but certainly the whole team needs to improve a lot in this aspect.”

Arteta went beyond tactical issues and also mentioned the team’s mentality and how Arsenal allowed the opponent to score. According to him, the struggle until the final minutes was not just about resilience but the result of systemic mistakes:

“That’s a positive point, but I don’t want to simply attribute it to toughness or grit. No, the problem lies in what happened before. We should have stopped it at the source, and that’s our responsibility. However, credit must be given to Wolves for their performance. I watched their matches at Stamford Bridge and against Aston Villa and saw how unlucky they were not to get better results. I knew this wouldn’t be an easy game, but we made it harder by conceding in that manner, and that is unacceptable.”

Despite many dissatisfactions, this victory helps Arsenal maintain their lead at the top of the Premier League. After this round, the Gunners temporarily extended their lead to 5 points over Man City, who are closely chasing in second place. As the season reaches a critical phase, Arteta understands his team must quickly “refresh” themselves to avoid costly slip-ups.

Speaking about upcoming plans, Arteta stated:

“What we need to do now is ‘reset,’ give the players two days to relieve some pressure, then we’ll have a full week to prepare. When you don’t train, some things start to decline, certain habits begin to fade because you’re not practicing or using them. So we have to use this time to do that, to boost the team’s spirit, because everyone knows the Christmas period is often a decisive turning point in the season and we want to be proactive during that time.”

In the next round 17, Arsenal will face Everton, a team that always poses challenges. Given what they showed against Wolves, it’s clear Arteta and his players understand that if they want to keep the top spot, they cannot afford to be complacent even after a win.