Arteta unhappy as Arsenal beat Slavia Prague 2-1 in Champions League

Summarised from 3 outlets · 4 reports · Updated 5 Nov, 09:13 · Archive

Arsenal defeated Slavia Prague 2-1 in the Champions League, but manager Mikel Arteta criticised his team's second-half performance.

Arsenal won 2-1 away at Slavia Prague in the Champions League. Noni Madueke gave the Gunners an early lead after nine minutes, and Viktor Gyokeres extended their advantage before half-time. However, Arteta felt his team failed to maintain their first-half form. Arsenal appeared to tire after the break, with goalkeeper David Raya making a stunning save from Oskar Kubiak to keep them ahead. Wiktor Nowak converted David Jurasek's cross in the final minute to give Slavia Prague a consolation goal.

Arteta acknowledged the difficulty of winning away but was critical of his side's second-half performance. 'Two very different halves,' he told TNT Sports. 'The first one, I think we played at a really high level, exceptional at times. The scoreline should have reflected three or four goals.' He added that Arsenal were 'sloppy' and gave away possession too easily after the interval. 'We gave so many balls away, so many bad clearances, we didn't keep the ball or the structure at all,' he said, praising Slavia Prague's spirit and intensity.

The victory lifted Arsenal to third in the table and extended their unbeaten run in the Champions League group stage to three wins and a draw from four matches.

How it is being reported

• ‘In our veins’: Arsenal pushed by pain of Champions League final defeat, says Raya‘On us to make it better this year,’ goalkeeper admits He credits self-belief as key to making decisive saves David Raya has said Arsenal are using the pain of losing on penalties against Paris Saint-Germain in last year’s Champions League final to “make it better this year”. The Spain goalkeeper produced an outstanding save to help Arsenal hold off Slavia Prague on Wednesday as Mikel Arteta’s side moved up to third in the league standings with 10 points from four matches. Continue reading...The Guardian · 5 Nov, 10:08
• Steve McManaman says he ‘feels sorry’ for two Arsenal starsViktor Gyokeres and Kai Havertz unfairly ‘get the blame’ when Arsenal aren’t at their best, says Steve McManaman (Picture: TNT Sports) Steve McManaman said he ‘felt sorry’ for Viktor Gyokeres and Kai Havertz following Arsenal’s 2-1 win over Slavia Prague as Mikel Arteta ’s playing style means the…Metro · 5 Nov, 10:02
• Mikel Arteta brands Arsenal stars ‘extremely far from our standards’ in Slavia Prague winMikel Arteta was surprised to see his team drop off in the second half (Picture: Press Association) Mikel Arteta was not impressed with his Arsenal team in the second half of their 2-1 win at Slavia Prague on Wednesday, saying they were ‘extremely far from our standards’ after the interval. The…Metro · 5 Nov, 08:49
• Mikel Arteta left unhappy with Arsenal's 'sloppy' Champions League winThe Gunners appeared to tire after half-time against Slavia Prague and conceded late on in a 2-1 winIndependent Sport · 5 Nov, 07:25

In this story: Arsenal · Slavia Prague · Mikel Arteta · Noni Madueke · Viktor Gyokeres · David Raya · Wiktor Nowak

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