Arteta: My ideal playing style is like a car's GPS system, finding the best route to avoid traffic

Ahead of Arsenal's Premier League Matchday 7 away fixture against Nottingham Forest, head coach Mikel Arteta sat down for an interview with Sky Sports.

Mikel, it's good to see you. The last time we spoke was at the end of last season when you'd completed the job. How do you approach maintaining that title-winning intensity going into a new season? How do you feel about it so far? Do you find maintaining this form and defending the trophy harder or easier than last season?

Trying to achieve the same goal again is a huge driving force for us, and it's what constantly pushes us forward. I think the key is the love we have for what we do and the high standards we place on ourselves. This love and these standards are exactly at the same level as before. So this is what we want to achieve; it's not some kind of heavy pressure, but a pure desire, a huge motivation to repeat success.

Obviously, your team might be showing a new mentality this year. One thing Arsenal fans might have noticed recently is the shift away from set pieces – in the past, there was always talk about set-piece goals, but now it's more about open-play football. Compared to other teams in the league, you currently have the highest proportion of open-play goals. Is this something you've intentionally designed, or has it always been part of your plan?

Well, we want to be the best in every aspect. If we can achieve that, we'll likely be champions of major competitions again. But honestly, it's striking to be criticized for the type of goal we score. While we'd love to feature on highlight reels every day with brilliant finishes, every goal has the same value. What matters most to us is the value of winning – whether we're the better team and whether we deserved to win. We focus on that process and the outcome, because that's what will sustain our continued success.

Yes, you obviously played for Wenger at this club, and there was always the term "Wengerball" – quick counter-attacking, quick passing. People used to joke that we "walked the ball into the net." For Arsenal fans, when you think about your coaching career at Arsenal and how you want people to describe "Mikel Arteta's playing style," what picture comes to mind? What do you want it to look like?

I think it doesn't really depend on "what I want it to be," but on "what we actually are as a team." We're a completely different team now compared to seven years ago, with completely different core players, and the entire league is constantly evolving. Look at the Champions League and the Premier League; they're completely different.

So what are we exactly? What we need to be is the best version that the game demands. That's what I strive for – for Arsenal to be the best-performing team under the demands of the current game, to excel in this type of match. Because if we can do that, we'll be a team that consistently wins and deserves to win, because we're better than our opponents.

So is it all about adaptability? Understanding the next opponent and adjusting your lineup accordingly? Does the playing style change for different situations? But to me it seems like a clash of personalities – what kind of playing style do you actually want to have?

Did you watch the first 16 minutes of Liverpool versus Man City? Look at how many times they reorganized their attack and how many continuous passing sequences they had with more than four passes. You should take a good look; that is a playing style, because that's how the game evolved and how the two teams responded to each other.

It's like you're driving on the highway and there's an accident ahead – "Oh, but I'm driving a Ferrari!" – "Yes, but I can't drive 200 kilometers an hour right now because there's traffic; you have to take a detour, my friend." If you go to Germany, maybe there's no speed limit, and then you can go as fast as you want. So what is the demand of the game at that moment? It's to be the best at meeting that demand. To have the best GPS system so you can avoid traffic, take another route, and arrive on time – that's what we have to do.

Excellent, a very convincing analogy! So let's look at some specific players, especially this season – I really liked what you said about Bukayo Saka. You almost set a goal for him, hoping he would score more goals this season. Is that what you truly expect from him? Do you hope to see more involvement and presence in the penalty area?

100%. The closer he is to the penalty box and the surrounding areas, the shorter the distance to goal, we all know what results that will bring. As long as he consistently generates a high volume of attacking actions, it will inevitably boost his goal tally and his impact on the team.

How many goals do you think he can score? Did you set a specific target for him, or did you leave it for him to challenge himself and see how high he could push that number?

Two or three every game! His contribution must be like this: every time he steps onto the field or into training, he must compete with this mentality. I believe by the end of the season, you'll be very pleased with the final outcome.

Martin Ødegaard is another key player. I'd like to discuss a few of these players, because I think the team has improved as a whole. Martin seemed like a completely different player after the World Cup, and many fans noticed this. Given his current form, it really feels that way. Why do you think this is? Is it because of the World Cup and his success there?

Well, he clearly went through a period last season filled with injuries and many setbacks, which prevented him from maintaining the consistency and stability required. But I think those experiences ignited something special – an eagerness to prove himself, a strong desire to develop, to impact the team, and to feel important again, and he's done that exceptionally well this season.

The last player I want to mention today is Myles Lewis-Skelly. It felt like at some point last season, when he moved into the midfield role, he truly showed his ability and transformed. As an Arsenal fan watching him play, you could clearly feel a completely different confidence radiating from him. Do you think his growth over the past six months or so is mainly due to a change in mentality or an adjustment in his position on the field?

Mentality, absolutely mentality.

What specific changes have you noticed mentality-wise?

When your role at the club starts to change – considering his previous experience, his rise was incredibly fast, perhaps even too early. He played in a position he had never played before, left-back, and performed exceptionally well, surprising everyone. But then you need to establish yourself in that position, and that's extremely difficult.

Then you experience ups and downs – struggling – and that's when you need to react. When your role changes for the better, everything is easy; but when it becomes a change you don't like as much, that's when you're truly tested.

He had a period where some things needed to be corrected and improved. We did a lot of targeted work with him, and he gave us plenty of reason to put him in the starting lineup. We moved him to midfield because that was a position where we needed cover at the time. He performed extraordinarily well, and now he's maintaining that momentum. He can play attacking midfield, defensive midfield, or even full-back. That's the kind of player we need because he's versatile and can do everything well.

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