Furious Mikel Arteta admits he was ‘killing himself’ vs Liverpool

Arsenal came from two goals behind to draw 2-2 against Premier League champions, Liverpool, on Sunday evening, but Mikel Arteta was disappointed with his side’s performance.

Following their Champions League heartbreak in midweek, as they were knocked out in the semi-final by Paris Saint-Germain, Arsenal’s start at Anfield couldn’t have gone worse.

After 20 minutes, a quick throw-in from Curtis Jones ultimately cost the inattentive Gunners, as Andy Robertson’s subsequent cross was converted by Cody Gakpo, and moments later, Luis Díaz scored into an open net to double the home side’s lead.

However, while Anfield was in party mode, and Arsenal looked heading for defeat, Gabriel Martinelli’s glancing header restored hope just minutes into the second-half, and Mikel Merino pulled the Gunners onto level terms by the 70th minute, before seeing red just nine minutes later.

Although Arsenal went on to draw the game, and picking up a valuable point in their hunt to secure Champions League football next season, Arteta was unhappy with his side’s performance in the opening 45 minutes.

The Spaniard believed his side was ‘very far off it’, and although Arsenal reacted well in the second-half, Arteta made it clear that ‘I hate reaction, I like action’.

When asked if the reaction makes up for the Gunners’ initial performance, Arteta explained: ‘I think it makes it worse… and you’re going to still, after two-nil at Anfield, like any other team will do, we play the way that we play, come back, maybe should have won it and at the end maybe lose it again for something that was in our hands for sure and having to play for the sixth time in the season with ten men’.

Although he was unimpressed by his players, he later went on to clarify that he was also to blame for the initial difficult spell: ‘That’s on me, that’s my responsibility. What I saw in the first 25 minutes, 30 minutes, some of the actions… I was killing myself.’, before finishing, ‘Sorry for the words that I used’

The comeback saw Arsenal continue their unbeaten league run against Liverpool, which now stretches to 1,152 days, while they also gained, what could be a crucial, point in the race for Europe. Arteta’s side host Newcastle next, before travelling to Southampton on the final day of the campaign, and a win in either fixture would guarantee the North London club to retain Champions League status for another season.