Mikel Arteta says winning pre-season friendlies can help ahead of Manchester United clash

Mikel Arteta spoke to the press ahead of Arsenal’s pre-season friendly with Manchester United at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles on Saturday evening.

After attending a community event with LA Rams counterpart Sean McVay, Arteta held a press conference for journalists in the City of Angels.

He answered questions on Saturday’s game (tickets still available), what it would mean to win and their aims for next season.

“Winning always helps – it brings belief, it brings good vibes,” said Arteta, as per Arsenal’s official website. “We are playing one of the best teams in the world in one of the nicest stadiums in the world, built by our owners, so it’s a big day for us tomorrow.”

Arsenal finished runners-up to Man City in the Premier League last season, so their main objectives will include winning the league title.

Winning pre-season matches won’t make that happen, but it could set them up for a bright start to the competitive campaign.

United go into their third pre-season friendly looking for a second win. The Reds beat Rangers 2-0 at Murrayfield last weekend and lost their final against Rosenborg in Norway.

What has Arteta done to his face?

I opened my phone this morning and scrolled through X, only to be left baffled by Arteta’s appearance in a new video.

Arsenal posted a video in which Arteta previewed the upcoming season.

The manager hardly looked recognisable, with some users on X confused into thinking it was an Ai generated image.

Who is this and what has he done with Arteta? https://t.co/AnWLLyAp4C pic.twitter.com/DhsBCn4ykG

— Nooruddean (@BeardedGenius) July 26, 2024

Botched, stung by a bee or done dirty by Ai. What do you think?

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