Mikel Arteta underlined what Antonio Conte has brought to Tottenham ahead of the North London derby on Sunday.
The 52-year-old Italian coach is still undefeated in the Premier League following his arrival at Spurs, overseeing five wins and three draws in that time. He has completely transformed the team and now the Gunners will be facing a different Tottenham than the one they beat earlier in the campaign.
Speaking to gathered reporters in a press conference earlier today, Arteta first discussed Arsenal’s performance in their 0-0 draw with Liverpool and if that shows the progress of his team.
“I think we are in the right direction. Yesterday we had to play an extremely difficult match, 70 minutes with 10 men, but I saw a lot of leadership on that pitch from very young players and that gives me a lot of encouragement because they understood what was needed, they were up for the challenge and they showed a real fight and resilience to do what they did.”
He then gave his thoughts on Conte’s Tottenham and the derby on Sunday.
“What Antonio brings is a lot of clarity of his way of playing. He masters what he has done, he is an extremely successful coach.
“They play differently, they have different principles they apply and it will be a really difficult match. We know that what happened in September has no value now, it is a new match and a really important one for us.”
The Spanish coach highlighted how great it would feel to do the double over Spurs.
“It would be great because I know how much that means to everyone at the club, our supporters and how important it is as well for the league table and for our success.”
Finally, Arteta discussed the importance of the fans at the North London derby.
“The way our fans helped us last night, it was incredible. I constantly mentioned them after the match, it was like, at some stages, playing at home. They were close to them, they could feel that and it gave them tremendous energy.
“It’s going to be the same when they go out there. I don’t know in terms of numbers if we cannot take that many, but they will make the noise and I’m expecting the same when Liverpool come back to the Emirates in a week’s time.”
Conte’s Tottenham currently sit 6th in the Premier League table with 33 points after 18 games, two points behind Arsenal, although they have two games in hand.
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