JAKARTA – Mikel Arteta said Arsenal showed our true colors in the 4-1 victory over Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, February 22, 2026, after being embarrassed by the previous draw at home to Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Eberechi Eze and Viktor Gyokeres both scored twice as the Gunners put on an impressive North London Derby performance to move five points clear at the top of the Premier League table.
The Gunners’ resilience has been repeatedly questioned this season and the criticism has intensified after wasting a lead to draw 2-2 against bottom club Wolves in the middle of last week.
However, they responded impressively after Randal Kolo Muani scored the equalizer for Spurs in the 34th minute. Arsenal immediately scored three goals in the second half, which gave them their fifth consecutive victory over Spurs – their best record since 1989.
“It feels like we showed our identity. But then you have to show it again and again and again. If you just analyze your feelings after every game, it’s like a big and unsustainable roller coaster.”
“I’m very proud and happy for what I’ve seen out there, but especially the way we’ve lived the last 72 hours because I think this game in particular needs context.”
“After what happened against Wolves and the way we lost two points in the last kick of the game, it was difficult. However, that’s the beauty of this game.”
“There is no explanation after watching the game again how we could play a draw. From any point of view, you watch it back and say that’s not possible. You have to watch it again and say it won’t happen.”
“But it happens and then you have to pick yourself up because you feel angry, upset, and ashamed at some point. We are all different nationalities, we all have different feelings, and then you have to bring everyone together.”
“It’s been really nice to spend time with them, to align everything and say, what’s going to happen in the next round?” said Arteta after the game.
Both Arsenal and Manchester City, who have one game more than the Gunners, now have a rare week off before their next matches.
Pep Guardiola has hinted that he will allow Manchester City players to “drink lots of caipirinha and daiquiri over these three days” before returning to focus.
When asked if he would do the same, Arteta said: “I don’t drink cocktails. So, no, we’ll do our own thing.”
“The number of matches we play in every event is really amazing. It gives you the opportunity to really rest for a while, analyze what we are doing and continue again until the international break. We will play many more matches,” said Arteta.
The English, Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, and French versions are automatically generated by the AI. So there may still be inaccuracies in translating, please always see Indonesian as our main language.
(system supported by DigitalSiber.id)