Mikel Arteta praised his Arsenal players after they secured a dramatic 2-1 victory at Newcastle to close the gap on Liverpool.
The Gunners went into the clash five points behind the league leaders and faced a challenging task at a ground where they have often struggled.
Arsenal started strongly and believed they had won a penalty when Nick Pope fouled Viktor Gyökeres, but VAR overturned the decision.
Newcastle struck first through Nick Woltemade’s header, leaving Arsenal with work to do in the closing stages of a tense match.
Arsenal show resilience in comeback win
The visitors equalised in the 84th minute when Mikel Merino found the net, before Gabriel Magalhães scored in the 96th minute to complete the turnaround.
The victory ended Arsenal’s poor run at St James’ Park, having lost their last three visits there.
Speaking to Sky Sports after the match, Arteta stressed that his team had taken a step forward by coming through difficult moments.
“That’s how you get to a different level. Going through those tough moments and taking experiences from it,” he said.
The Arsenal manager revealed how he challenged his players to seize the chance to prove themselves during the game.
“We discussed that in the game, and it’s a massive opportunity now to make a statement and to prove to everybody and ourselves the team that we are,” he explained.
Manager calls it a statement win
Arteta insisted his team had responded in the best possible way, praising both their performance and the final result.
“And we certainly did with the performance and thankfully with the result as well at the end,” he added.
Asked if the victory was a statement, the Arsenal boss said it was a show of progress and proof to themselves of what they can achieve.
“That was a statement? Well, for ourselves, yes, just to prove, because it’s a terrific team that’s so difficult to play against, and we already played at Old Trafford. We played at Anfield, we played Man City,” Arteta said.
He highlighted the consistency and quality his players displayed at St James’ Park, noting the importance of competing at that level.
“We already played here very early in the season. And again, the level of consistency and quality we showed in the performance today was top.”
Arsenal are now just two points behind Liverpool at the top of the table and will turn their attention to the Champions League.
The Gunners welcome Olympiacos to the Emirates for their second group-stage match as they aim to extend their winning run.
