Oleksandr Zinchenko is looking forward to Sunday’s game against Manchester City at Emirates Stadium, and is under no illusions about how difficult the task will be, but insists the home support can play a huge part in the outcome.
“It’s a massive game for us,” he said on Friday. “Unfortunately we haven’t won against City for a long time in the Premier League. Obviously we’re expecting a tough game.
“The fans at Emirates Stadium are always trying to push us forward. We really appreciate it because it helps us a lot when there are tough moments.
“It was always a pleasure to play here as a City player. Apart from the amazing crowd, they always had amazing grass on the pitch. It’s a pleasure to play here. I don’t remember getting cramp playing here because of the quality of the pitch.
“Before kick-off, the way our crowd sings North London Forever is so loud and gives you goosebumps.”
Asked about Kai Havertz being assigned penalty-taking duties in last weekend’s game against AFC Bournemouth, Oleksandr explained how it was typical of our character as a team.
“We are one family because we are spending time with each other,” he said. “On and off the pitch we try to be together. It was an amazing gesture from Martin and Bukayo because they are two of our penalty takers and it was so good for Kai. He’s such an important player for us with amazing qualities.
“You’re growing as a person with such nice people around, trying to improve yourself. You learn every single day through a lot of different situations, sometimes with emotions. You need to have experiences to know how to react.”
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