Interview

‘Defending as a unit makes a big difference'

Since returning from the international break, we have taken six points from six in the Premier League and kept two clean sheets.

Firstly we kept the much-feted Tottenham strikeforce quiet as we won the north London derby, then stood firm to secure a last-gasp win at Burnley.

Laurent Koscielny puts this defensive resilience down to the fact the whole team is working as a unit… even if he understands that it can be “boring” for some members of the side.

“When you are 11 players who fight together, it is easier for us at the back to defend,” he said. “We could see in the first half against Burnley that when they had no pressure up front, they could play long balls and travel at the back. 

“In the second half, we put more pressure on their centre backs and were higher because we take the ball quicker and can be more of a danger for our opponents. It is a collective job.

“With the quality we have, it is the mentality we need to keep very high and push ourselves more. I can understand defending is sometimes boring for some players but we need to have them with us because it can be a big difference on the pitch when we defend together.”

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