ARSENAL manager Mikel Arteta believes the club can be propelled to claim bigger silverware if they win this season’s Carabao Cup, as he weighed in on Lionel Messi’s Ballon d’Or triumph.
The Gunners visit West Ham tonight in the fourth round of the competition as they continue their quest for a first trophy since they won the FA Cup in 2020.
Arsenal have also not won the Premier League title since the ‘Invincibles’ of 2003/2004, and Arteta is convinced that winning the Carabao Cup might be the launching pad for more important trophies.
“I do. Even if you are doing rotation, the role of the players that are committed to challenging for this trophy or this game, I think it’s critical for them to show what they can do when they are really important and given the chance,” Arteta said during his pre-match press conference yesterday when asked if he thought winning the Carabao Cup could be a stepping stone to bigger prizes.
“When they are in or out, how are you going to approach the game and are you going to win the game for the team?
“I think if you want to grow as a team and you don’t have that mindset, it is very difficult so the mindset of every three days and being able to do it in different ways and different contexts when you have a big game next week, or we just played in the Champions League or another big game here, it’s: ‘OK, what is the behaviour of the team and how they respond to that.’ I think it’s very important.”
Although many big clubs, including Arsenal, use the Carabao Cup to rest their key players and give opportunities to youngsters, Arteta insists that the competition is important to him.
“Yes, I live it exactly the same as a Premier League game. I have the same feeling in my tummy, the same uncertainty and the same way to prepare and I’m going to be there closer to the game. I just want to win the game, for sure,” he said.
Arsenal face Newcastle United in the Premier League after tonight’s clash but the Spaniard claimed his sole focus is on the West Ham clash and the opportunity to win a trophy.
“We just have to beat West Ham. It’s a competition that we have the chance to progress and win a trophy and our mindset is going to be focused just on West Ham,” he responded when asked if he would pick tonight’s team with the weekend in mind.
“Doing what we are doing being consistent and playing better than the opponent, against West Ham is going to be a really tough game. It always is away from home against them and we want to continue with the momentum and form that we’re in. That’s it.”
When asked if Declan Rice, who joined Arsenal from West Ham in the summer for over £100m, is likely to feature against his former club, Arteta said: “He’s likely. He’s fit and can be involved. It will be his first time back at his old club and a beautiful moment I think for him.
“I think it’s beautiful (Rice going back to his former club). I had the experience to do it a few times and then you really see what they think of you and what you left at the club. It’s a really good way to measure your experience and your reality within the reality of the people who share moments with you.
“I would say so (Rice will get a good reception). I hope so. Especially, every time you hear him talk about West Ham and what they did for him and everybody at the club, he cannot talk any higher, so hopefully they will be the same way towards him.”
On Monday night, Messi won the Ballon d’Or for best player in the world for a record-extending eighth time.
There were those who felt the 36-year-old Argentina captain did not deserve the prize. Arteta is not one of them.
“When you talk about Messi, it can never be wrong. What he’s done; he’s won the World Cup, at his age, it was the pinnacle of his career,” Arteta noted.
“Everybody was expecting it, it’s just incredible. The consistency that he has shown, the level that he has put world football into, it’s incredible. I’m so glad as well that we had a few nominated in those lists.”
