After seeing a new-look side draw 1-1 against Bournemouth, Mikel Arteta was delighted with both the youngsters he handed opportunities to, as well as his regulars.
Fabio Vieira grabbed our goal which was later cancelled out by Antoine Semenyo, but a subsequent penalty shoot-out success coupled with the display from our young Gunners meant that Mikel was a happy man afterwards.
Ayden Heaven, Ethan Nwaneri, Salah-Eddine Oulad M’Hand and Myles Lewis-Skelly all started in Los Angeles, while Omar Rekik, Jimi Gower, Josh Nichols and Charles Sagoe Jr entered the fray in the second half, and the boss was delighted with their showings against a Cherries side packed with Premier League experience.
“I’m really pleased because we had really special circumstances today,” Mikel said afterwards. “We arrived two days ago, we had so many young kids playing with us that had never played before and I think we had a really strong performance against a side that is a bit ahead of us in their schedule.
“They had a full first-team available , so I’m really proud of them, both the young kids and the senior ones, because they have fulfilled their roles in a really impressive way.
“That was a different level today to the game that we played last Saturday, and it was another big step. We looked really connected and as a manager, it was just a joy to see the faces of those kids making their debut, participating, and the excitement showed, and as well to see our senior players put themselves in their shoes and give them the support and be the role models that we want.”
After the 90 minutes were up we triumphed 5-4 on penalties, with Karl Hein coming up trumps with a pair of top saves to see us advanced. After going through the penalty process last pre-season regularly, Mikel was pleased we continued to impress from the spot, and hopes to see the same when we head to SoFi Stadium on Saturday to face Manchester United.
“It’s very good practice and I think Karl was again very important for us to win it,” Mikel added. “We showed composure and won, that is what we aim for.
“Thank you so much for all the supporters that turned out today to create a good atmosphere here, and I’m sure on Saturday it’s going to be full against Man Utd. We’re excited, it’s a big connection that we have with that stadium and our owners, so we’re going to put in a big performance.”
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