Mikel Arteta's three keys to beating Southampton revealed on 'dark arts' notepad
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta had a sheet of paper that highlighted some of the subtle tactics the Gunners were looking to employ during their win over Southampton
by Samuel Meade · The MirrorMikel Arteta's Arsenal "principles" were spotted on a piece of paper as the Spaniard reviewed his notes during their win over Southampton.
The Gunners came from behind to see off the Saints, who took a shock second-half lead at the Emirates. The hosts then came up with three answered goals to take maximum points as Kai Havertz, Gabriel Martinelli and Bukayo Saka all got on the scoresheet.
Arsenal have become an increasingly streetwise outfit, earning them plenty of plaudits, as they morph into a title challenging team. Already this season their smart play has aided them, largely when leading, as rival managers point to the "dark arts" they employ.
Arteta clearly had a specific sheet prepped for the clash with Southampton. Part of the writing was covered but it offered an insight into what tactics they employed on Saturday.
His first point said: “Force AR 6 yard.” That likely to be an instruction regarding Aaron Ramsdale, who returned as the opposition goalkeeper. Arsenal perhaps keen to keep the Saints No 1 penned as close to his six yard line as possible.
The other two points were slightly covered. The first began by saying "force our..." whilst the third and final point said "no switch.."
Arteta and Arsenal were accused of using dark arts during their draw at Manchester City. Down to 10 men, Gunners stars kept going down to seek attention from the medic.
But the Spaniard rejected the idea his team were faking it. “Let’s see who is available tomorrow and then we can talk about dark arts or these things or if it’s a reality," he said.
Arsenal, Manchester City and Liverpool occupy the top three positions in the table, separated by just a point after all three won on Saturday. Arteta said: "First half I thought it was exceptional.
"The amount of dominance that we had in the areas that we played, the amount of situations and chances we created in open play and set pieces, our counter-press worked really well there. It's unbelievable that we didn’t score a goal.
"Then we started the second half, we were a bit sloppy, especially in the first 5-10 minutes with the ball and then the game became a little more open. Then the chance they had, they scored the goal, and then again, we’ve thrown everything away that we did in the first half.
"It was a completely brand-new game in a really difficult context and the team reacted incredibly well with a lot of composure; big belief, very good clarity in what we had to do."
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