Mikel Arteta responds to Joshua Kimmich dig at Arsenal after Bayern Munich defeat

Mikel Arteta insists Arsenal are not the only team using a direct style after Joshua Kimmich accused the Gunners of relying on set-pieces and long balls after Bayern Munich’s defeat in the Champions League this week.

Arsenal ran out deserved 3-1 winners at the Emirates Stadium to hand Bayern their first defeat of the season in all competitions.

Speaking after the game, Kimmich dismissed the suggestion that Arsenal have been Bayern’s toughest opponent this season and claimed their win against Paris Saint-Germain earlier this month was ‘more a football game’.

‘I think PSG were the toughest one, especially the way they play football,’ Kimmich said.

‘Arsenal is completely different. They rely on set-pieces. They love to play the long balls, they love to fight for the second balls, it was a completely different game.

‘Against PSG, it’s more a football game. Today, it was not so much about football, it was about game management, it was more about the duels.’

When asked about Kimmich’s comments on Friday, Arteta replied: ‘I think the way both teams play, I think the way they played against PSG was very similar.

‘When everything becomes man-to-man and the way they are with their full-backs, the way we do what we did in terms of rotation, they create a game that has very long sequences of passes.

‘So I know what he’s saying, so that’s fine, it’s part of the game. I think the game is provoked in the manner that both teams play, so it’s very understandable.’

Premier League leaders Arsenal travel to second-placed Chelsea on Sunday and Arteta was full of praise for Enzo Maresca’s side.

When asked if Chelsea are the best attacking team in the Premier League, Arteta replied: ‘The sample now, it’s a bit early in the season, so it’s difficult to say, but it’s one of the teams that I enjoy the most watching, and they have a lot of fluidity, they have a lot of strength, they have a lot of individual talent, they are very clear what they want to do, and that’s why they’re pretty tough.’

Asked if the game against Chelsea will be the biggest of Arsenal’s season so far, Arteta said: ‘We always have the same questions, I understand. For us it is, because it’s the next game.

‘We just live in the present and make the best possible preparation to try to be better than them and win the game.’

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