Arteta: “The only thing I have in mind is preparing the team to go out like beasts”

Arsenal coach Mikel Arteta has assured that he expects his players to come out “like beasts” in the second leg of the Champions League semi-finals this Tuesday against Atlético de Madrid at the Emirates Stadium, and has confessed that it would be “a dream” to go to a Champions League final in front of his “people”.

“The only thing I have in mind is to finish preparing tomorrow’s game and the team as best as possible and for us to go out there like beasts to enjoy the moment,” he declared in the press conference prior to the clash, in which he confirmed that the Dutch defender Jurriën Timber “is out”, while the Norwegian Martin Odegaard and the German Kai Havertz “are available.”

Furthermore, the Spanish coach showed absolute confidence in his players achieving a victory this Tuesday. “The way they compete and play and the desire they have to win… They have shown me all year that I have to trust them, and that conviction comes from what I see and what I feel. Tomorrow will be a different game, but we are prepared to play it, to compete in it and, above all, to win it,” he indicated.

“It is a dream for us to have the possibility tomorrow of going to a Champions League final in front of our people. It is something that we have not experienced for many years, something special and we really want to experience it,” he noted, before talking about the first leg. “We did a very clear analysis of the game, especially about the moments we experienced. We have focused on the game we want for tomorrow, what our weapons are and how to get it there,” he explained.

Regarding what Atlético expects tomorrow, the Basque coach stated that “we will have to see.” “I don’t know what they have proposed, I’m not there. I think they have the ability to do many things very well, that’s the reason why they are here. There will be moments for everything in the game, like in the Madrid game. Each one will play the game that interests them most and see who is better,” he explained.

Nor does it affect whether Argentine Julián Álvarez plays or not. “I can’t control that, so it can’t condition me. Tomorrow they will do something, they will start with some, they will end with others, the same thing that we have and the same problem that they have. We will adapt as always and we will take the game to where we believe is best for us,” he said.

Finally, he did not want to speculate on how he is perceived as a coach in Spain. “I imagine or hope that with someone with a lot of passion, honest and who does absolutely everything for his club and his players,” he concluded.