Former Arsenal defender Lee Dixon has hailed the impact that Mikel Arteta has had at the Emirates Stadium after picking up his first win in his third attempt with a 2-0 success against Manchester United.
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Goals from Nicolas Pepe and Sokratis Papastathopoulos secured the Gunners’ first win in five Premier League games and breathed new life into their season.
Speaking on TalkSPORT, Dixon praised the improved quality of performances since Arteta’s appointment, citing the improved sense of positivity in the stands following the morale-boosting victory over the Red Devils.
Dixon also insisted that the Spaniard’s end goal will be to install Arsenal as challengers for the top two positions in the Premier League.
He said: “I don’t want to go overboard on his progress three games in, but there are definitely signs.
“The Emirates hasn’t been like that in many years – it almost sent goosebumps down my spine.
“It is a long-term project; there is no doubt about that.
“Moving forward, forget top four and top six, this team – my Arsenal Football Club – has to be challenging for one and two – be second pushing for first. That is the level they need to get back to, but it is a massive mountain to climb from where we are right now.”
The atmosphere at the Emirates Stadium has been often derided, with the Gunners’ home since 2006 coming second-last in a recent study on the subject regarding last season’s Premier League sides.
So that Arteta has already been given a glowing review in that department is perhaps an achievement in itself.
It remains to be seen how long the Spaniard can sustain this new-look Arsenal, with the man himself admitting that his side struggled to maintain the intensity of a first-half performance that had essentially won the game following United’s futile dominance in the second.
However, the initial signs indeed look positive following Dixon’s approval of Arsenal’s state of affairs a week into Arteta’s reign in north London and earning their first positive result on Wednesday.
Arsenal fans, how far can Arteta take this team? Let us know in the comments below!
