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‘Over My Dead Body’: Arteta Says Arsenal Still Fighting For Title

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Arsenal’s Spanish manager Mikel Arteta applauds fans on the pitch after the English Premier League football match between Leicester City and Arsenal at King Power Stadium in Leicester, central England on February 15, 2025. Arsenal won the game 2-0. (Photo by JUSTIN TALLIS / AFP

 

Mikel Arteta said he would give up in the Premier League title race “over my dead body” even though he admitted Arsenal face a historically tough challenge to catch Liverpool.

The Gunners, who travel to face high-flying Nottingham Forest on Wednesday, are 11 points behind the runaway leaders after losing to West Ham at the weekend, a day before their rivals won at Manchester City.

The result was a bitter disappointment for Arteta, whose injury-hit team have finished as runners-up to City in each of the past two seasons.

But the bullish Arsenal boss told his pre-match press conference on Tuesday that he would give up the title challenge “over my dead body”.

The Spaniard said he would “go home” if he no longer believed the Gunners could catch Arne Slot’s Liverpool.

“Mathematically it’s possible. You are there, you have to play every game,” he said.

But Arteta admitted the enormous scale of the task as Arsenal chase their first Premier League title since 2004.

“If you’re going to win this Premier League with the circumstances that we have, you’re probably going to have to do something nobody else has done in the history of the Premier League,” he said.

He added: “In the end, you are going to have to set a number of numbers to win in this league, and we’re going to have to hit that number if we are going to have any chance of doing that.

“But we are certainly going to continue to try.”

Arsenal, who have a game in hand over Liverpool, have been derailed by a series of injuries, particularly in forward areas.

Kai Havertz and Gabriel Jesus are out for the season while Bukayo Saka is due to return next month having been sidelined since December and Gabriel Martinelli is also currently unavailable.

Captain Martin Odegaard missed 12 games with an ankle injury earlier in the campaign.

Arteta said he was proud of his team’s resilience and ambition, saying the 1-0 home defeat to West Ham had been a “very hard one to take”.

But he added: “The reality is there are so many games to play, and you have to get back to it.

“You have to have the levels and the consistency and the hunger to go again, and that’s what we are going to do on Wednesday.”

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Garnacho Nears Aston Villa Move

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Following the concluded move of Morgan Rogers to Chelsea, indication has emerged that want away Chelsea player, Garnacho may become an Aston Villa player soon according to transfer expert, Romano.

 

On July 21st, Romano stated on his podcast that Garnacho is moving closer to joining Aston Villa.
He reported that Morgan Rogers’ move to Chelsea has been officially announced, and in the same conversation, Aston Villa inquired about Garnacho.

” Before that, there had been no contact between the two parties, but now Garnacho is getting closer to joining Aston Villa.

“Villa sent an official offer this afternoon (local time, 21st): a loan with a buy-out clause that would become mandatory under specific conditions. The information I received tonight is that this mandatory buy-out condition is very easy to trigger, which is why Chelsea are prepared to accept Aston Villa’s terms.

“If Aston Villa can now agree personal terms with Garnacho, they can finalize the deal within the next few hours. Garnacho is very close to joining Aston Villa; it now only needs the player’s final approval. Emery is pushing hard to sign Garnacho and is personally involved. It now depends on the player’s stance, as Chelsea are open to accepting this offer” he maintained.

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Standoff With Manager:Wolves Arokodare Shut Out Of Team !

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Championship club Wolverhampton Wanderers have drawn a hard line with Super Eagles’ Tolu Arokodare after a fiery pre-season confrontation that left the Nigerian striker frozen out of first-team plans.

 

New head coach Cesar Peixoto has reportedly lost patience with the 25-year-old, who refused to leave the pitch when told not to train with the squad.

The fallout was immediate. Wolves cancelled training, tightened security at Compton Park, and left Arokodare out of the group travelling to Maidenhead United as the club made it clear that no player is bigger than the dressing room.

For Arokodare, this is no longer just a bad moment in pre-season; it looks like a full-blown exit route, per this post from journalist Nathan Judah.

Wolves are now actively trying to move him on after a difficult first season and his value has taken a hit following the club’s relegation to the Championship, but the striker still wants to stay in one of Europe’s top five leagues.

Wolves draw a line on Arokodare
This is a major power shift at Compton Park. Peixoto has signaled that discipline matters more than status, and Arokodare’s refusal to comply appears to have triggered a much bigger response than a simple training-ground warning.

The club’s reaction was severe because the message had to be severe. Cancelling a session and beefing up security is the kind of move that usually happens when a manager wants to make an example of a player and reset standards fast.

Wolves are said to be open to offers as they try to cut costs and recover part of the fee paid for Arokodare. Fiorentina and Genoa are understood to be among the clubs watching the situation closely, with loan deals and options to buy now being explored.

Turkey has also been in the conversation, but Arokodare reportedly prefers a move that keeps him in a top-five European league.

That preference may work in his favor if Serie A sides stay serious, but the standoff at Wolves has only made the next step more urgent.

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Scholes: Tuchel’s Post-Match Comments Suggest He Wants England To Sack Him

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England lost 2-1 to Argentina in the FIFA World Cup semifinal, and Tuchel’s tactics came under heavy criticism.

 

From Anthony Gordon’s goal in the 55th minute to Lautaro Martinez’s stoppage-time winner in the 92nd minute, England’s possession rate was only 12%. Tuchel attributed this to England’s “football DNA” after the match, stating that the players were not comfortable with possession football. Scholes believes that Tuchel’s remarks led people to suspect he wanted to force England to sack him.

“I think his comments after the game made things worse than the actual performance on the pitch. This public criticism of players does not align with the traditional style of English football, and you, Tuchel, are now in this environment and should respect these conventions.

He is always harsh and frequently criticizes players publicly, which is something our local coaches would never do.

In the past, our coaches would never come out and openly criticize players; any problems would only be discussed behind closed doors.

Of course, privately, on the training ground, and in internal meetings, coaches can severely criticize and admonish players, but never publicly.

However, Tuchel has a history of similar public outbursts. Looking at his recent statements, one can’t help but wonder if he intentionally wants to be sacked by England. To be honest, I really feel that way; some coaches use this method to force teams to fire them. From his series of statements, it is clear he wants to leave.

Yesterday, I learned from others that he has had serious conflicts with personnel at several clubs he has coached previously.”

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