Arteta wary of revived Manchester United against ‘far from perfect’ Arsenal

Arsenal welcomed the return of Riccardo Calafiori and Piero Hincapie to training ahead of Sunday’s match against Manchester United, but manager Mikel Arteta expressed concerns about the renewed intensity of their opponents under Michael Carrick.

United defeated second-placed Manchester City 2-0 last weekend under interim manager Carrick, extending Arsenal’s lead at the top of the table to seven points.

Arteta acknowledged United’s challenge, comparing it to Arsenal’s 1-0 win in their August meeting.

“Yes, with Michael coming in it will bring new ideas, the intensity will increase, you could see that in the Manchester derby with their behavior and the game they played,” Arteta told reporters on Friday.

«We expect a tough match, but we will certainly adapt to it. We are at home and we know how important that will be for us.»

Arteta was unsure whether Calafiori, who has been out since last month with a muscle injury, and Hincapie, who suffered a groin injury earlier this month, will be ready to join Arsenal’s defense this weekend after returning to training on Friday.

“We still have training to do, so we’ll see tomorrow,” he said.

Gabriel Jesus and Viktor Gyokeres are battling for a place in the starting line-up after both strikers impressed in Tuesday’s 3-1 Champions League win against Inter Milan. Jesus scored twice, while substitute Gyokeres also found the net.

“That’s what we were waiting for with the number of games coming up, and they’ll all get chances and minutes, so great to have them back and especially to have them in good form,” he said.

The manager added that striker Kai Havertz has almost fully recovered, leaving winger Max Dowman the only player sidelined through injury.

Arteta also addressed Arsenal’s decision to send teenage midfielder Ethan Nwaneri on loan to Olympique de Marseille.

«At the end of the day you have to be thrown to the sharks in an incredible atmosphere and club. It will bring so much good,» Arteta said of the move.

ARSENAL ‘FAR FROM PERFECT’

Arteta said his side had room for improvement despite being unbeaten in their last 12 games and winning all seven Champions League games this season, while Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola called Arsenal the best team in the world.

«I think we are the team that wants to continuously improve. We are doing a lot of things well, but we are far from perfect and our only goal is to maintain the level we are reaching and try to improve again,» Arteta said.

“You have to dominate all phases of the game if we want to have a chance of winning major trophies.”

Published on January 23, 2026