Every word from Arteta's pre-Brighton presser

Mikel Arteta has been speaking to the press ahead of our trip to Brighton & Hove Albion in the Premier League.

Our manager gave a fitness update, assessed Brighton and much more.

Read every word below, with a video of the press conference to follow:

on the heart rate coming down after Sunday:

Yeah, and when the whistle went, done. So it wasn't for that long. I think I have a very strong heart. I think it's been tested since I was two, since I was born, basically. So it's been a few years.

on Kai Havertz:

So he's done a part of the session, we will have to wait and see whether he's available and in which condition. The rest I don’t think there will be anybody else.

on Martin Odegaard:

We will see.

on Ben White:

Ben is not available.

on Max Dowman:

Max is available.

on Odegaard's injury:

Yeah, we have to wait and see how comfortable he is to do certain actions.

on Declan Rice:

I hope so. He was much better today. Obviously, we haven't really trained because we have only two days to prepare the game. So, hopefully, it's going to be better tomorrow.

on David Raya:

Yes, David is good. Good to go.

on set pieces:

I'm upset that we don't score more and that we concede as well. So, we want to be the best and the most dominant team in every aspect of the game, and that's the trajectory and the aim of this team, and as a club, we want to be the same, so we try to do that.

on being criticised for being good at set pieces:

Part of the job.

on game management when in front:

We have to do much better with the ball, in our actions, and then I said, a lot of credit to Chelsea as well because from very tight situations, they produced the biggest chance from a cross that is not a shot, converted into a shot and David had to make a big save. That was it. A few days ago, against Spurs, the second half, when went in 1-1, and the game obviously deserved much better from our side. We managed to score three goals and win the game more constantly. So, all the time we have to continue to learn.

on speaking to the players about nerves:

We talk about every aspect of the game, and managing a game, managing a result, managing a set-time context; you have ten men against eleven. It's a very important one. So, we discuss about everything.

on facing Brighton:

Very, very good side. The way they’re coached as well. They have a sequence of years as well with a very similar style and players that fit really, really well, what they want to do, they really believe in what they do. So, always a very tough opponent.

on what Eze can offer on the wing:

Yeah, depending on the opposition especially, and the relationship that he's got around, because he’s a player that needs a lot of movement around him to activate those spaces, to create a space for himself, and for him in order to be efficient in those spaces. But it's certainly an option that we have in the team.

on closing games out:

There are a lot of factors to that. As I said, some of them are related to us, and us being more clear and more willing to do certain things, and then, as well, the opponent, what they do well and put you in the back foot.

on the quality of our set pieces:

I don't know. I mean, you as an opponent, you get upset when you concede a goal. I was really upset the way we conceded a goal against Chelsea, and Chelsea, look at the quality that they have, the amount of set-pieces they score, Manchester United are doing so well. The same, when I was at Man City, used to work a lot on them. So, it's something, and there are phases and there are moments when a team has an opportunity to do certain things, and the game is evolving and the game is becoming more and more difficult. Before, when you used to do a game plan and you just invert a full-back and bring an extra player in midfield, or a false-nine, opponents are finished, big overload, 4v3 inside, 2v1 inside, time on the ball, so dominant, 70-80% of possession, the other opponent, two counter-attacks, set-pieces, the game is done. Now, teams are adapting. Teams know after every sequence of play, whether it's a throw-in or a style of play, an open-play situation, or direct play, exactly what they have to do, and everything is almost man-to-man. So, it's going to be a different game unless we change the rules, because the evolution of the game is that.

on the game being about winning:

I don’t know how you can celebrate one goal differently from another one. Maybe for YouTube, it’s nicer with one than the other. The reality of football depends a lot - I would like to play with three extra players in my own half to get some beautiful football against the free man, but that’s not the reality of football. If you want to watch that football, you have to go to another country. This is the Premier League, for the last two or three seasons, this is not the case.

on if he could play in this era:

Even four years ago, it was a different game. But yes, only as a No.9!

on energy from the crowd:

I think when you have the ball, you need to make certain decisions. If I’m shouting to a player when they have the ball “pass to him, pass to him”, you’re not making decisions, you’re just being told what to do. What you see and feel is very different. We’d done three transitions [when I calmed the crowd down] and my heart rate was at 180. The game is required to slow down, and [we needed to] control and dominate it. If there’s an opportunity to run, because I’m fresh after a set-piece and I had a minute to rest, that’s a different opportunity to run. So, there are a lot of factors and the players have to make those decisions. I mean, the crowd normally shouts in this country - “shoot, shoot” from 40 yards as well. We can shoot all the time: “What are you doing, shooting from there?”, so I think we’ll have a split in stadiums. It’s natural that they are pushing, but we need to understand that it’s a moment we have to take our time to start attacking the right way.

on if you need control and dominance to win:

If you can get control and get dominance, you have the best chance of winning every game, especially in the areas we want to win those games, and what sequences we play that are more favourable for us, that’s the objective.

on Martin Zubimendi's minutes in his first season:

[There are] different circumstances. Obviously, the number of games and competitions we’re involved in, certain injuries as well, and the fact that obviously, he’s doing so well and for a first year, he’s had a great season.

on any concerns on his fitness:

We have to [manage his fitness]. We have to do that now - I mean, we are late [in the season], and we’ve been doing that for the whole season. It’s an unprecedented season for us - we’ve never played this many games, ever in our history. On top of that, there are guys going with their national teams in March, and on top of that, we have a World Cup, so for sure, that’s something we keep an eye on. But they’re going to break every record they had in the past, whether it’s in one season, two or three, because the number of games they have is inevitable.

on if he thinks as Zubimendi and Rice as a pair:

Yes [I think of them as a pair]. I mean, we always talk about these relationships and chemistry. There is one, and it’s very strong off the field as well. That makes what happens on the field very, very special.

on if he thinks about resting either:

Yes, it’s always like this with any player - you have to understand which games are more fitted for them and other players as well. That’s what we have to do - understand how they’re feeling, because there are moments when you feel that it’s the right moment to go, and others when you say I’m in a great moment and I want to continue to play.

on managing the emotions at the end of the season:

Those emotions are going to be different now, but we’ve managed a lot of emotions over the last eight months. The deal from here until the end is that we’re going to have to do a lot of the things that have nothing to do with emotion as well. To continue to rehearse and to hope to win what we want to win.

on data playing a role in the gameplans:

Data, and the education we all have, I think that influences a lot - and yes, what we learn from other teams, leagues and managers that is being implemented in the system. It’s a very rich system in the Premier League - we all learn from each other and the game becomes more and more complicated. Now we have to do something. We have to agree - there are sets of rules that we cannot play football; you cannot go man-to-man. We’re going to see tomorrow, it will be a different league. There are choices we have to make, but if everybody wants to be more competitive, more efficient, then we have to accept there’s going to be a change.

on Bukayo Saka's adaptability and performances:

The importance of B and what he brings to the table emotionally to the team; the experience and the role that he already has in the team and how this impacts the opposition is clear. His performances have been really good. We can increase the numbers, obviously, but his position at the moment, I think, is in a good place.

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