Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has praised his team following their emphatic 4-1 win over Crystal Palace in the Premier League on Sunday.
The Gunners extended their lead at the top of the table to eight points with a convincing display against London rivals at the Emirates Stadium.
Goals from Gabriel Martinelli (28), Bukayo Saka (43, 74) and Granit Xhaka (55) ensured the league leaders continued their excellent form heading into the international break.
Speaking at his post match interview, the Spaniard was pleased with the determination and purpose by his players.
Arteta told the official website:
“I’m really happy, very pleased with the way we started the game. I was really happy with the way they reacted after Thursday, and we took any question mark away from it. We showed a lot of determination, a lot of purpose in our way of playing. I’m really happy to perform the way we did after playing 120 minutes, after losing two big players for us and to still compete and win the game how we did.”
Mikel Arteta made changes to the centre of his defense with Rob Holding replacing the injured William Saliba and impressed the manager with a solid display against a difficult opponent in Wilfried Zaha.
The Arsenal manager is hoping Saliba will be back soon.
“We hope so, and we hope Willy is going to be better news but again we have to wait until tomorrow to understand a better picture.
“We have lost players – we lost Gabby for four months, we lost Thomas for one and a half months, we lost Alex Zinchenko for one and a half months, we lost Elneny for six to eight months, now we lost Eddie and now we lost Tomiyasu and Saliba. Everybody has to give more. It’s not a secret, if we want to maintain that level, everyone has to step in, give more and Rob is a great example of what we needed today.”
The team will return to action after the international break, welcoming Leeds United at the Emirates Stadium on April 1.
