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Gatting: 'We had to dig in and battle'

Steve Gatting

Steve Gatting spoke to Arsenal.com after his Arsenal Under-21 side earned a 2-2 draw at Manchester United on Monday night.

on the game…
It was a tough game, but you always expect that away at Man United. We got a little bit stretched every now and then in the first half and found it hard to defend. In the second half, we put that right and were secure not only at the back but through the whole team.

on digging in when 2-1 down…
We had to dig in. They played well and we got a bit stretched and allowed them to play well. We were not quite working as three units and they took advantage of it.

on being frustrated at not winning…
We tightened it up in the second half and looking at the chances and near chances, we could quite easily have won.

on what impressed him…
The character and work rate of the boys. I thought we showed our defensive qualities at the back in the second half and worked tirelessly up front to make chances for ourselves.

on Chuba Akpom…
Chuba plays in that role up front, which is difficult. He worked very hard and put them under lots of pressure. I’m pleased he scored his two goals.

on what he’ll take into future games…
There’s always positives, especially coming here and getting a good result. As well as that, we played well.