EVENS: Yoane Wissa celebrates drawing Bees level on Saturday EVENS: Yoane Wissa celebrates drawing Bees level on Saturday
Image: EPA
MIKEL Arteta insists Arsenal weren’t distracted by their Champions League showdown with Real Madrid after a 1-1 draw against Brentford all but ended their Premier League title challenge on Saturday.
Arteta’s span needed a victory at the Emirates Stadium to retain their faint hopes of catching runaway leaders Liverpool.
But Thomas Partey’s 61st-minute opener was cancelled out by Yoane Wissa in the 74th minute.
Arsenal were not at their best as they sukkeled to match the intensity that blew Real away in their 3-0 win in the Champions League quarter-final first leg on Tuesday.
With the second leg looming on Wednesday it would have been understandable if Arsenal’s players were distracted, but Arteta said that was not the case.
FRUSTRATED: Mikel Arteta FRUSTRATED: Mikel Arteta
Image: EPA
Arteta says: “The way the feeling was with the players, certainly not. To prepare well you have to play as well as possible and win the next game.
“We are disappointed with the result. We had full control of the game and conceded a very poor goal. It was not good enough and when you don't do what you have to do against this team, you concede a goal.
“The attitude, if you see at the end we have to play with 10 men and we had two big opportunities to score, you cannot say it is about energy.
“We play every three days and are used to it, so there is not an excuse of energy.”
Arsenal have won just two of their last seven league games, effectively gift-wrapping the title for Liverpool.
Arteta adds: “An opportunity missed for sure because we wanted to win and increase our opportunities in the league. But we haven't managed to do that.
“We have to be critical with ourselves, especially with the way we conceded the goal.
“Now it is time to recover well and tomorrow we have to start to prepare for the most beautiful game of the season [against Real].”
Arteta might be without Jorginho at the Santiago Bernabeu after the Italy midfielder was injured in the closing minutes against Brentford.
He says: “I don’t know. He said he could not breathe properly so it might be to do with one of the ribs.
“It is strange because Jorgi normally carries on so that means it is something significant I think.”