Michael Owen has dismissed Fabian Hurzeler’s scathing criticism of Arsenal and suggested the Brighton boss may renege on his promise must be ever find himself battling for a league title.
The Gunners were removed from their best on the south coast last night and were forced to depend on a steely defensive performance to grind out an important 1-0 win.
Bukayo Saka’s fortuitous early goal ultimately secured three points which tasted even sweeter after news of Manchester City’s 2-2 draw with Nottingham Forest filtered through.
Mikel Arteta’s side now hold a seven point lead, albeit having played a game more, over their closest rivals within the table and, given their commanding position, the Arsenal boss was capable of dismiss Hurzeler’s criticisms of his side’s playing style.
‘What a surprise,’ Arteta said, with a healthy dose of sarcasm, in his post match press conference after several of his Brighton counterpart’s pointed observations were out to him.
Owen, meanwhile, conceded this incarnation of Arsenal is probably not easy on the attention, but acknowledged that aesthetics count for little the thick of a title run-in.
‘He might change his mind if he’s going for a title,’ said Owen in response to the German’s claim that he’d never set his side up in such a perceived negative fashion. ‘Then and any old win will do.
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‘Listen, Arsenal have played well for the overwhelming majority of the season and it’s the oldest saying within the football book, sometimes you’ve got to win playing ugly.
‘Arsenal have done that as well this season and fair play to them. They discover a way of winning.
‘That’s starts in Arsenal’s case with having a really strong defence, a excellent goalkeeper and a really organised defence, a solid midfield.
‘They aren’t what Liverpool have been, aren’t what Manchester City have been over the past decade or so. Mainly blitzing teams scoring a great deal of goals but additionally conceding a couple of as well so that they’re not that kind of play.
‘They’re well drilled and as soon as they rating one you rarely see them not picking up the points. After all they’d a little bit of a blip at Wolves not so way back. Aside from that after they rating you may just see them shutting out games.
‘They hardly created anything tonight but Brighton didn’t really appear like scoring either. Brighton had plenty of pressure but Arsenal defended their box rather well.’
Quite than concentrate on the growing legion of detractors, Arteta was keen to place the post match emphasis on the collective spirit and determination of a bunch of players who’ve bounced back so emphatically from that recent slip at Molineux.
He said: ‘It’s an enormous win. We knew how tough it was going to be.
‘We’re getting back from a really difficult game with plenty of intensity, with players really going through the road in every game, with difficulties, not capable of train and to return here and get the result that we got, I believe it’s remarkable.
‘I mean, while you have a look at the quantity of minutes that players have played compared to last season, they’re already much higher than last season.
‘That’s the schedule, the normality that we now have now within the competition that we’re in.
‘We now have to simply accept it, but the extent of energy and desire that they put in, it’s phenomenal.’
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