Martin Keown claims that Mikel Arteta “deserves a lot of praise” for winning the second trophy of his term at Emirates Stadium and according to him the Arsenal manager’s special “philosophy” was clear to see in the Community Shield final.
In his recent Daily Mail column, the longtime Arsenal defender wrote: “Mikel Arteta will gladly accept this victory and he deserves a lot of praise. Arsenal has gotten the best of Liverpool (twice), Manchester City in the semi-finals of the FA Cup, and Chelsea in the final over the last 50 days.”
“In the build-up, the squad barely had a couple of training sessions together, but we saw a well-coached side causing team issues for Jurgen Klopp.”
“As Arsenal went from back to front in less than 20 seconds, you could see the ideology behind the opening goal. There was a clear identity to this success under Arteta.”
“His back three was solid and you wonder if he’s able to stick by the structure. Mohamed Elneny came back from his loan at Besiktas looking safe alongside Granit Xhaka in midfield. Emiliano Martinez seems capable to be the first-choice goalkeeper for Arsenal instead of Bernd Leno.”
“We’re all curious, of course, if Aubameyang will remain because, judging by Saturday, it seems more probable he will. For Arteta’s Arsenal, this was a good day out.”
Keown added: “Say what you want about the Community Shield — if you believe it’s a trophy or a glorified friendly — but the act of collecting silverware is never a bad habit to have.”
