Mikel Arteta, the manager of Arsenal, has rejected Joshua Kimmich’s recent criticism of his side’s approach, stating that the Gunners are not the only team that plays a direct style of football.
Following Bayern Munich’s 3-1 Champions League loss at the Emirates on Wednesday, Kimmich criticized Arsenal for relying too much on set pieces and long balls. He pointed to PSG as a team that plays more fluid football and implied that Arsenal is not the most formidable opponent Bayern has faced this season.
Kimmich continued, “Arsenal does not play football but tries to win games by every means possible.”
During his pre-match press conference on Friday, Arteta responded to the remarks. The Spaniard emphasized that both teams’ strategies were represented in the match style rather than taking offense.
Arteta remarked, “I think the way both teams play, I think the way they played against PSG was very similar.” “They build a game with really long pass sequences when everything goes man-to-man and they use their full-backs in the same way that we did in terms of rotation.
I understand what he’s saying, so it’s okay; it’s just a part of the game. It makes perfect sense, in my opinion, because the way both teams play provokes the game.
Arsenal will now focus on the Premier League, traveling to Stamford Bridge on Sunday to play second-place Chelsea.
