The arrival of Viktor Gyökeres dominated the talk in the post-match press conference after our win over Newcastle United on Sunday.
The striker signed late on Saturday, and was paraded before kick-off on the Singapore National Stadium pitch. After the game, Mikel Arteta was asked about the Swede’s arrival, as well as the win over Newcastle, Max Dowman’s contribution and more.
Here’s a full transcript from the press conference…
On our attacking options following the signing of Viktor Gyökeres…
Yeah, we do have plans, we do have a lot of options and we are increasing the quality of the squad and the depth of the squad with all the signings that we’ve done. We are super happy to have Viktor with us, it’s been a long journey to get him over here. He’s been incredible, he was very clear from the beginning where he wanted to play and how passionate I felt from him from day one when we first spoke. You can see the boys, you can see the environment as well, very excited with his arrival.
On the interest from the club on Viktor…
Yeah, well we can’t talk about how the processes work but it’s a decision that we take between all of us, especially with ownership, then the board, then Andrea and the scouting department, and also myself and we were very clear on the talent that we identified in the window. But actually to deliver it is something very, very different and I think the club has done incredibly well, Andrea and his team, they’ve been absolutely fantastic. So I mean so early in the window, we already have the reinforcements that we wanted.
On whether he’ll be training tomorrow and playing against Tottenham Hotspur…
Well I think he hasn’t had a single training session with the team since the last game with Sporting when they became champions. So we will assess him tomorrow, he’s done all the medicals, everything is looking good but to get him up to speed with the right levels of fitness I think is very important. So we’re not going to stop him, we want him with us as quick as possible but we’ll have to assess and the medical team will do that.
On Gyökeres having an impact at the club…
Well, I hope so. We have a few of them as well in this window and that’s what we want to create as well. You know that excitement internally, that competition and those resources internally and externally. We want our supporters as excited as possible, really believing in what the team can deliver, creating at the Emirates that special atmosphere and all that is going to be super important for us to be successful.
On whether Mikel is still looking to add more depth to the squad…
Let’s see, the market is still going on and we’ll have to balance that out with the squad as well. I think we’ll be open to see what happens.
On Max Dowman’s performance…
Yeah, it is special. Obviously what he’s done today against this team in the time that he had on the pitch is something certainly not common to witness for a 15-year-old. We are extremely happy to have him. I think again the environment that he’s around in, his family, the people at the club and around the academy as well. Super helpful because they put him into this position so early in his journey having a real chance and a real presence when he plays for the first team.
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On why Mosquera wasn’t in the matchday squad against Newcastle…
Because he needs to start to pick up the feelings again. He played the under 21 Euros, then he didn’t really train with Valencia then that signing period was extended a little bit and the conditions here are really tough and there’s a lot of information for him, a lot of physical demands that we put in so we’re going to have to manage him slowly.
On Calafiori coming off through injury…
Yeah, he said that he felt a little tweak, so I don’t know how big it is but hopefully not.
On Zubimendi’s performance…
Very good. I think the demand that Newcastle put on you, especially in midfield, with the kind of plays and profiles that he had, I think he coped with it with intensity, with the physicality. He’s so smart, he’s one step ahead constantly, he can read situations, he can execute at higher speed, whether he has space or not, and that’s not a common thing to have in a player, especially when you’re a midfield player.
On the physicality of the game…
I think it’s not a friendly, I think they are a test and I think you have to take this as an opportunity as well to raise the competitive level and there are things that physically obviously we want to achieve but there are things in terms of how we compete, how we understand the position and that willingness to win regardless of what we are playing for and I love the mentality of the team in that sense.
On Gyökeres’ strong ability from the penalty spot…
Well, I’m sure that he will step in if they allow him to do so, because as you say he’s been very consistent and he’s scored many goals, but we have some other penalty takers, really good ones as well. So they will resolve it themselves and if not I will intervene in the right moment!
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