For the second time in his spell as Arsenal manager, Mikel Arteta has confirmed that his side will give Liverpool a guard of honour ahead of kickoff on Sunday.
The Gunners were the Reds’ ‘closest’ competitors throughout the Premier League season but they never made it a title race, with their biggest and only lead of one point coming after matchday four.
Arne Slot‘s side have been a level above the rest and by winning with four games to spare they earned themselves a guard of honour from their opponents, with Chelsea the first to pay respect.
Ahead of Sunday’s meeting, Arteta has confirmed his side will follow suit, saying in his press conference: “They deserve that.
“They’ve been the best team, they’ve been the most consistent, and what Arne and the coaching staff have done has been fascinating, it’s been really good.
“They fully deserve it, and that’s the sport. When somebody’s better, you have to applaud, accept and try to reach that level.”
This is the second of two guard of honours the Spaniard has been a part of to pay respect to Liverpool’s achievements, having done so in the 2019/20 season.
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The difference on this occasion is that there will be a full house at Anfield on Sunday for the occasion, and Arteta wants the pain of the moment to motivate his squad for next season.
“Something has to drive you, motivate you, and pain for this is a good one to use sometimes,” he said.
“You know when you really want to do something, but it’s the right thing to do, usually as a motivation for next season.”
The Gunners arrive off the back of their Champions League semi-final defeat to Paris Saint-Germain, and Arteta is still insisting his side were the best team in the Champions League.
He even went as far as saying, “There are two words, success and failure, that are not part of my vocabulary” – talk about delusion.
We’ll see you on Sunday, Mikel!
