Arteta says Arsenal want more after matching clean sheet record
Arsenal equaled their all-time consecutive clean sheet record on Tuesday night, but Mikel Arteta says players always want to do better.
Photo by Gabriel Kuchta/Getty Images
Arsenal kept a clean sheet against Slavia Prague in the Champions League on Tuesday night, but they had to give themselves a late scare to do so.
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3-0 and cruising, Arsenal fans were shocked to see the referee pointing to the penalty spot for an alleged foul by Ben White. White had won the ball with a high foot, but the referee thought he had caught an opponent in doing so.
Replays showed White winning the ball back, the opponent had their foot just as high in the air, and there was very little, if any, contact. Upon VAR review, the decision was overturned and Arsenal stood firm.
Photo by Gabriel Kuchta/Getty Images
This particular clean sheet was significant, as it was the club’s eighth joint record in a row. Since 1903, Arsenal had failed to keep eight consecutive clean sheets in all competitions.
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Mikel Arteta was happy to equal that record, although he insists the players are still hungry for it.
“Well, it was a long time ago, so that shows you the difficulty of achieving it,” Arteta said. “There’s obviously a lot of work there to get there.
“The most pleasing thing, probably not the records, is the mindset of the players. They talk there about how we can still do better. There were still one or two situations that we could have resolved better.
“So if we do that, we can continue to improve and this record will have greater meaning.”
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Arsenal now have the chance to break their own record, as a clean sheet at Sunderland this weekend would be the first time the club have managed nine in a row.
It won’t be easy though, as Sunderland sit fourth in the Premier League table and recently beat Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. The team will have to earn it.