Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has taken responsibility for his team’s Carabao Cup loss to West Ham United on Wednesday night.
Arsenal would have seen themselves as strong contenders to win the trophy this season, especially after Manchester City’s unexpected elimination in the previous round. The Gunners haven’t won the Carabao Cup since 1993.
However, David Moyes’ West Ham had different plans at the London Stadium. The Hammers claimed an early lead with Ben White’s own goal, and then Mohammed Kudus extended their advantage in the early second half, with Jarrod Bowen putting the hosts in a commanding position at the hour mark.
Arsenal managed to pull one goal back through Martin Odegaard, but it came in the 96th minute. This outcome occurred just days after Arteta’s team had convincingly defeated Sheffield United, scoring five goals without conceding, and moving up to second place in the Premier League standings.
“I’m really disappointed and I am responsible for that,” Mikel Arteta told Sky Sports, after Arsenal defeat. “It wasn’t good enough. We didn’t compete good enough. I tried to warn the players for 48 hours what was coming and how important it was going to be.
“Overall we were nowhere near the level we needed to show. This is football and every game is different. What happened a few days ago against Sheffield United is in the bin and in the past.
“We didn’t threaten enough. I wanted to see much more from my team. There is a lot to improve. The thing we have to take from the game today is how are we going to use this to beat Newcastle on Saturday. Feeling the pain. That’s what we have to do now.”
