Mikel Arteta was happy with Arsenal’s response in overcoming a poor first half against Leeds to win.
Arsenal advanced to the fourth round of the FA Cup – and a meeting with Bournemouth – by beating Leeds 1-0 at the Emirates Stadium.
Leeds were the better side for the first half and some of the second but failed to capitalise on their dominance, with Reiss Nelson ensuring they paid the ultimate price.
Striker Alexandre Lacazette revealed after the game that Arteta “shouted a lot” and “was not happy” at half-time “because we knew they were going to play like this and we didn’t respect what he said”.
Arteta himself was happy with the change in “mentality” after the break.
“They battered every team in the Championship every three days, the way they play they make it very difficult, they play man-to-man around the pitch.
“If you are not ready for that game you get exposed and you get done. The second half was a different story.
“When I see what I don’t want to see – and I am not talking about technically or tactically – what I expect from them and the standards we set, I cannot be happy and I have to let them know.
“We had to react and we changed some things, but the biggest change was how we approached the second half, the mentality, how aggressive we were, how we played in their half, won every duel, making runs forward, it was different.”