Mikel Arteta paid tribute to Arsenal’s newfound “personality and presence” after they came back from a goal down to defeat Bournemouth and move six points clear at the top of the Premier League.
Gabriel Magalhães made up for his error in gifting Evanilson the opening goal by lashing in the equaliser at the other end minutes later before Declan Rice scored twice after returning from a knee injury. Eli Junior Kroupi pulled one back late on but Arsenal were able to comfortably hang on as they began the new year with a fifth straight league win.
Arteta was full of praise for both the goalscorers as Arsenal avenged two defeats to Bournemouth last season and believes it showed evidence of how they have improved after finishing as runners-up for three successive years.
“I really loved today the next step of the team in terms of individual personality and presence,” he said. “I think what Gabi Magalhães has done after making a big mistake to concede the goal, the way he reacted to that, the way he played afterward, the way he transmitted energy after that, it was remarkable.
“And Declan, another one, every hour for him was important to be able to be available today, we didn’t know for how long, so in the manner that he competed, played and on top of that scored two goals, I think it was outstanding, and a really big message for the team.”
Rice missed the 4-1 win over Aston Villa on Tuesday due to a knee injury that he picked up against Brighton but the England midfielder passed a late fitness test and put in another outstanding performance.
“He was so disappointed not to play against Villa,” added Arteta. “He really wanted it, he tried in the morning, it was nowhere near a possibility. He wanted to train the next day, it wasn’t a possibility, until last minute I asked him: ‘How are you feeling?’ He said: ‘I’m in’, and he showed that he was big-time in.
“Declan is constantly adding things to his game, he’s constantly adding things to his role in the team, and I don’t see where he can stop, because he can still improve in a lot of areas, and he wants to improve. He’s such a pivotal player for us.”
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Bournemouth have now failed to win any of their past 11 Premier League matches and Andoni Iraola admitted the frustration is getting to him. “It is a feeling we’ve had a lot lately. We do a lot of good things but go away with one point or no points,” he said.
Iraola also expects Antoine Semenyo to feature against Tottenham on Wednesday despite his impending move to Manchester City. “The situation hasn’t changed. I expect him to play the next one,” he said. “There is a lot of noise, I can’t control that. Antoine is our player and, until I am told he is not, he will continue playing.”
