Mikel Arteta says his decision to replace Eberechi Eze at half-time during Arsenal’s 1-1 draw with Brentford was for tactical reasons.
Eze made his first Premier League start for Arsenal since Arsenal’s 2-1 win over Wolves on December 13, but only played 45 minutes before being replaced by Martin Odegaard.
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After the game, Arteta was asked why he made such a change.
“Because of the way they press,” he replied. “I think we need another type of material to bring more questions to them in these areas.
“I think he [Odegaard] The performance on the pitch was very good and the team got into another shape, more threatening, to get to the areas we wanted to be in. “
Arteta was also asked if he was worried about Eze’s form so far this season.
“Well, I think he had his moments,” Arteta explained. “It’s not easy when you move to a new club, it always is.
“When you play a team like this, the ball is not on the court a lot of the time and you have to constantly break out of the game and do that, especially with offensive and creative players, it’s a lot harder.”
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Arsenal’s lead at the top of the table has dropped from six points to four as they dropped two points against Brentford. Arteta believes City will persevere until the end of the season.
“We’re going to stay calm and we’re going to be willing and ready to win every game,” he said. “The only thing we can do is focus on that and improve collectively and individually to be better than our opponents every week.
“This is going to continue into May, whether we play before or after that. It’s just something we have to do and that’s the most important thing.”