The English Premier League is back this Friday the 13th of August and Arsenal travel to the newly promoted Brentford.
A fresh new start, and fresh new players in the ranks does wipe the slate clean a little ahead of the 2020/21 season. Edu and Arteta have made great signings with the likes of Ben White, Albert Sambi Lokonga, and Nuno Tavares, but it has still been a relatively frustrating Summer transfer window with a few holes still evident from last season.
Mikel Arteta faced the press ahead of his opener at the new Brentford Community Stadium on Friday Night, and here’s what the Arsenal manager had to say about the upcoming fixture:
Question: Looking at Brentford. Some newly promoted sides are quite cautious, quite safe, but doesn’t sound like we can expect that from Brentford this season.
Answer: “No. You look historically at what they’ve done in the last few years, very clear direction. I think from top to bottom of the club they know what they want to do. They execute it well and I think they will be a very tough opponent for every team in the Premier League.”
Question: What has impressed you most about their style of play?
Answer: “The clarity on what they do, and they have been doing it for a long time together. You can see they have that fluency and chemistry between them and the belief that the plan they’ve put in place works for them. And I think that’s the biggest strength for any team.”
Question: What have you made of Brentford coach Thomas Frank?
Answer: “I think he has done remarkable. I share with you the opinion that they are a very exciting team and the way they’ve come up after a few disappointments in the last few seasons on the last day, and the way they have reacted tells a lot about them. What Thomas has done there is fantastic.”
Question: Ivan Toney is a player that there is a lot of focus on, he certainly looks like he’s well equipped to make the step up to the Premier League.
Answer: “He’s shown his quality there for sure, and the recruitment that they’ve done in the past years in that position has been pretty successful and it will be the player, but I think it will be as well the system and how they work with the players.”
In my opinion, the 2020/21 English Premier league will be the most tightly contested in recent history.
The Arsenal manager came across unphased in his pre-match presser by the pressures surrounding the transfer window singings as well as pressure from the fans. Last season there were no supporters in the stands and managers seemed to have gotten away with a lot. Now, this time around they are back in action and players and managers will hear the fan’s voice in full roar.
For Arteta, this is his make-or-break season for his career and its European football or bust. It all begins with the opening fixture of the season against Brentford.
Written by Joshua Gaillard