POSITIVE Timber & Calafiori INJURY UPDATES | Mikel Arteta | Arsenal vs Burnley

What did you learn from the game last night and what impact does it have on your approach to Burnley on Monday?

Nothing.We focus just on the things that are in our hands, which is to prepare in the best possible way to beat Burnley, that's it.Not much at the moment, we still have a few days until Monday so we'll have to wait and see how certain players evolve and where they are at the warm -up for the game.We're prepared just to beat Burnley, that's it.

I'm just wondering, is there a player in the squad who would be a most likely candidate to host that kind of evening?

Again, I'm sorry, we're not thinking about that type of thing.The only focus is on Burnley and winning that game.That's the thing that we can control.

You say about the moment because here you are at this stage of the season again, two games away, potentially a week away from winning the league.

Well, the team is really present.It's just, it's living the moment.It's emotionally in a really good state, I think.The energy level is the right one.We have most players available now.OK, we lost Ben the other day, but the other ones are coming back as well.

So, yeah, and everybody obviously is so enthusiastic and so positive about the way that we can finish the season.

Is that on your mind as part of the preparation for these games?

First of all you have to have the right to win the game and obviously if I make a difference with more goals, that's obviouslyeven better but yeah we're all playing very tough matches.We had a really tough match against West Ham, we managed to win it and it was a great feeling but we know ideally that scoring goals is going to be important.

On that West Ham game, what have you made of the reaction to that West Ham disallowed goal in the days that followed and in general?How do you find the consistency around decisions in a packed penalty area?

Well, the reaction from our side extremely positive because we were so happy with the outcome and the fact that we won the game, such an important game for us as well.And we had a really, really intense week as well with the semi -final of the Champions League.In relation to the reaction, I haven't seen any of that.I'm sorry.I'm very consistent on that since July to August.To now, I think it's very clear.

I think anybody has played football, no discussion about the decision and I'm glad they took the right one.

Will he miss the World Cup if called upon?Do you know that?

We have to wait and see.It looks like a long -term injury so at the moment the focus is that when can we have him back to be available for Arsenal and that's not going to happen in many, many weeks.

Just finally, how much thought will go into, in particular, your right -back position for the closing weeks?Not just in the league, but of course PSG.What do you think of their left -hand side?

We need to look at alternatives.The two players that we have, they are not available at the moment, so we need to look and do something else.The good thing is that we have experienced that all over the pitch this season, because when we had issues, normally they've been in the same positions as well.and we have managed to find still the right level of performance and consistency so I'm sure we'll do that.Thank you.

Did you watch the game last night?

No, I was in a sponsored dinner.

Was it nice?

It was good, with Emirates, very good, really nice people.

Is it also potentially a little bit distracting for you and the players that the talk is not just about winning the game but how many goals you might need to score comes into it as well?

I think it's part of the narrative.I mean, there are various options and this could be one of those and it's a factor that it's important from the start of the season.We know that the difference is so small and you can make that difference bigger in your favour.Obviously, it can be important.

How much does it help at this stage of the season and how things have gone for you so far that this game on Monday is at home?

It's the schedule that we have.Obviously it has been It's been extremely demanding from the beginning.I think the team is coping with that in a really fantastic way.There is no other choice.We have the opportunity from our supporters.It's going to be a Monday night.

Let's take it in a really positive way.We leave something incredible with our supporters against Atletico.If we can replicate any of that, I know that the team is going to respond really, really well.

Can I just ask about Ricardo Calafiora, he came off with an injury, has he been able to train since or is he still waiting to find out?

No, we don't know whether he's going to be available or not, we still have days ahead.Hopefully it's nothing serious but we'll have to wait and see how he reacts to that.There are different options in relation to the opponent as well and the things that we want to do with certain wizards and players but we need to be open as well to that, not only to one but to two or three options because games can vary, players can pick an injury, I don't know.We need to be flexible on that and really think about that option.

Every chance by this time next week you could be Premier League winner.What this season has pleased you the most about your team and has pleased you most about what you've learned?

to adapt to very difficult and demanding circumstances and still perform and win the amount of games that we've done.

How much has that been a different pressure for you?Has it been a pressure you've enjoyed more, the fact that others have had to try and match you?

The last few years they've been different.We think we've been in both positions is what it is. I think the fact that we've been at the top for a long time shows the level of consistency and how well the team has done to stay there in this league.But yeah, it's where we are now more than ever.Obviously we want to finish in that position and that's what we're trying to do.

Red Action have confirmed they're going to do another meet the coach event on Monday before the game against Atletico.What was that event like from your perspective?inside that coach, seeing the fans, seeing the flares, the noise, everything that was there?

I lost it.I think all the players that lost it, I think it builds an energy connection with them that we haven't experienced before.The whole preparation and the whole atmosphere showed that the level of meaning was higher and the level of implication and desire and passion from our supporters was different as well.And it really helps.

Can you take us beyond the tinted glass of the coach as well?Because we can see the scenes on the outside, but did you see your players react in a different way with their faces?

The players were in the other bus, but I could see straight away all the staff and everybody was there just looking at each other.I said, wow, we've taken this now to a different level.Just looking, the engagement, the passion, the enthusiasm of our fans in their eyes, I think that was something special.

I'd like to take you back to just after the final whistle at the Etihad, one of your favourite memories of the season.You said then it's a new season.Obviously, coming from the outside, it doesn't feel like that.You've had a rough run of form since then.You've won every game except one, which was at the Metropolitano.What changed?

How did the atmosphere change?

It was a reset moment.The performance certainly was there and I think we deserved much more than when we got out of the game.But we used that as fuel to be even more convinced and to understand, OK, what we've done up to now is fine, let's learn every bit of it and now let's use it for the last five games.That's what has remained and we have every chance to go and do it.

Just on Jürgen, how is he evolving?Because I think he was around the team for the game at the time.

He wanted to be very close to the team.He's progressed a little bit in the last few days.He's feeling better.We're going to try to get him fit and available as quick as possible, but let's see.Obviously he's been out now for a while, unfortunately.He's such an important player for us, we all know that, and he's doing everything that he possibly can to help the team in any capacity.

and we know his leadership, his quality and how much the team needs him.He's trying everything that he can.

Is that something you've grown to understand more about yourself?That goes back to recruitment as well.

With the necessities and the demands that the players have nowadays, we need players that are comfortable, able, and they have the qualities to perform in different positions.Otherwise, it becomes really difficult, especially when you hit with injuries in the same positions for long periods of time.It would have been unsustainable.I mean, what the team has done in that sense, I think it's remarkable.

On the right -back, on the league phase against PSG last season, you played Calafiore there for 45 minutes.How much is what he offers out left -back transferable to the right?

Well, I think the sample is so tiny, you know, so it's very difficult to judge a player when he had so low minutes.The same when we played a different player, Thomas Partey, we had some really good moments, some others when you don't win, and it's because Thomas has played as a full -back.Declan Rice, when he's played as a full -back against Brighton, he was exceptional.But then the other night it was something else.Depends.I mean, the sample is still so little.

It will remain so little from here to the end of the season to judge whether a player is good enough.or can perform the position and what is the cost of moving that player from one position to the other and that's the balance that we need to try to find.I don't know if the work is risk.At the end we have to make a decision because the circumstances are requiring that.With Mazi it was a bit different.It was a choice because of what we saw and what we believed he could do and what the team was needing.

I think he's done really, really well.How to cook?I haven't seen that video.Is he good or no?That's a no.

How young are some of your players?

They have a great father and mother.I don't think they need a father but they have somebody that they can rely on whenever they need.We are very aware that at 18 you are a kid but at 22, 23 you still have a lot to learn and at 28 as well.I'm 44 now and I still have a lot to learn and I need great people around me to give me advice and support.We all need that in different stages.The thing is how willing they are and how humble they are to try to learn and to be given advice and support at the same time.

That level of between support and demands, I think that's when the sweet spot is and families are critical.So I'm glad to hear that he's learning how to cook.There are generic messages and generic demands to all of them, but then the players are very specific.They all are in a different moment as well, it's not just about the age or their nationality.It's what the player requires to perform at the highest level and that's what we have to try to provide.

Does that mean he's got a chance?

There is a chance but how big that chance is I cannot tell you.I'm being completely honest.He's going to try to do everything he can to convert that chance as high as possible in the shortest possible period and that's the challenge ahead.I feel that we have another opportunity on Monday to be a step closer and that's the only thing.

I just wanted to ask you about the contribution of the Spanish coaches because you and Guardiola are fighting for the title and you are in the final, he's in the final.So which is the contribution and also the influence of the Spanish coaches?

I think the contribution comes first by the opportunity given by this country, this league, to a lot of foreign managers to fulfil a dream and to give them the chance to do what they love the most.in the best league in the world, in my opinion.That's it.Then it's football and sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't.I think we are very grateful, especially the way we get treated here and the opportunitieswe've been given.

What makes you so trendy?

The players.Because they are the most important ones.The players are the ones that make the difference.I have no doubt about that.