Facing a team new to the Premier League on the opening day of the season is no easy task - but that's what is facing us on Friday night.
We travel across London to take on Brentford, and Mikel Arteta is a big admirer of the work our opponents have done to achieve promotion to the top-flight.
"If you look historically at what they’ve done in the last few years there’s a very clear direction," our manager said.
"I think from top to bottom of the club they know what they want to do and they execute it really well. I think they will be a really tough opponent for every team in the Premier League.
"[I like] the clarity in what they do. They’ve been doing it for a long time together and you can see they have that fluidity and chemistry between them, and they believe that the plan they’ve put in place works for them. I think that’s a big strength for any team.
"[Striker Ivan Toney] has shown his quality, that’s for sure," Arteta added. "But every recruitment they’ve done in that position over the last few years in that position has been pretty successful, so it’s the player, but I think it’s also the system and how they work with their players."
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