Arteta slams 'terrible' schedule despite Arsenal beating Everton
Mikel Arteta did not hold back after Arsenal's 2-0 win over Everton, branding the Premier League's fixture scheduling 'terrible' as his side were forced to play just three days after a gruelling Champions League trip to Bayern Munich.
Goals from Ezri Konsa and Gabriel Magalhaes secured the three points at the Emirates, but Arteta made five changes to his starting XI, one of them enforced, as he looked to manage his squad's fatigue following a punishing run of fixtures that also included an away trip to Nottingham Forest the previous Sunday.
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Speaking at his post match press conference, Arteta said: 'We are very happy with the victory, the performance and the week. We were given a terrible schedule. We have overcome every hurdle and I love the mentality of the team.'
He expanded on the issue in comments to Sky Sports, pointing to the physical toll of the midweek draw with Bayern. 'In Munich, it was one of the most physical games we've played in four years, the shift that we put in was incredible and then we have to play on Saturday at 3pm so we needed those legs, that freshness as well. Players are in good moments and they need minutes. They all did really well.'
United handed kinder turnaround
Arsenal were not the only Premier League club in European action on Wednesday night, but they appear to have come off worse in terms of scheduling. Manchester United, who also played away in Europe midweek, have been given a 4:30pm kick off on Sunday rather than the early Saturday slot handed to Arsenal.
Unlike Arsenal, United do not have a Carabao Cup fixture to contend with this week. The Gunners travel to Fleetwood in the fourth round, with Riccardo Calafiori a doubt for that trip after picking up a knock. 'He had a slight issue,' Arteta confirmed. 'We don't know what it is. It seems very small.'
Arteta pleased with response
Despite the scheduling frustrations, Arteta was full of praise for how his players responded, with Arsenal moving level with Manchester City at the top of the table. 'Really happy. We made five changes. We've had three games in less than six days so we knew how tough it was going to be,' he said.
'But I thought the team performed really well. I thought it was really active from the beginning, put a lot of pressure on the opposition. We had some problems to finish the actions but we scored from a set piece, the first one this season, and that gave us the confidence and composure to go and dominate the game. But until we scored the second goal, we knew it was game on.'
Arsenal will now turn their attention to the Carabao Cup trip to Fleetwood, with Arteta likely to rotate further given the condensed run of fixtures still to come.
