Arsenal continued their unbeaten streak in the Premier League today as their game against Manchester United ended in a goalless draw. Despite not getting the win, the club are still heading in the right direction, manager Mikel Arteta said to Sky Sports.
There were chances for both teams, but they could not capitalize on them and that resulted in the nil-nil stalemate. What was encouraging though, for the Gunners, was that they kept going until the final minute and it looked like they could conceivably score at any moment.
The result could have been different, had the North Londoners been able to utilize three players who werenโt able to play a part on Saturday. Even though they were without Kieran Tierney, Bukayo Saka and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, the north London side still coped well in their absence.
This was noticed by the boss, who said the game was competitive and the result a fair one. When he was asked about where the club was going, Arteta told Sky Sports:
“I thought it was a fair result. It was a big battle, both teams wanted to win, and it was a really competitive match. They had some moments in the first half, and we had the biggest moments in the second half, but to make the difference you need to score when we had the big chances we had.
“It is [a sign of progress]. Considering the circumstances and all the players we don’t have, it was a big test for us, and I think the team turned up and showed how much they wanted to win the game.
“We’ve been on a really strong run and we’ve faced some difficult opponents. The schedule is crazy, and we are losing players all the time, but we are in the right direction.”
If luck was with the Gunners, the result could have gone their way. This was most evident in the second half, where Alexandre Lacazette hit the post and Nicolas Pepe came inches away from scoring.
The defensive effort that the team put in would have also made the boss happy. United have one of the best attacks in the league and to keep them at bay is no small feat.
Even though they didnโt take advantage of their chances, a clean sheet was possible due to the effort put in by the defenders.
Arsenal donโt have much time to dwell on this result as have their next game is in a couple of days. They will be looking to do one better when they take on Wolves on Tuesday night. The Emirates club are slowly climbing up the table and a result like this should have encouraged the players. If we get to see more of the same grit from them going forward, we will getย use to seeing them obtaining three points instead of just one in matches.
