{"id":231368,"date":"2026-03-03T20:02:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-03T20:02:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/03\/03\/ugly-arsenals-new-nickname-gunners-boss-fires-back-after-stunning-liverpool-broadside\/"},"modified":"2026-03-03T20:02:00","modified_gmt":"2026-03-03T20:02:00","slug":"ugly-arsenals-new-nickname-gunners-boss-fires-back-after-stunning-liverpool-broadside","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/03\/03\/ugly-arsenals-new-nickname-gunners-boss-fires-back-after-stunning-liverpool-broadside\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Ugly\u2019 Arsenal\u2019s new nickname: Gunners boss fires back after stunning Liverpool broadside"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

\n

Mikel Arteta has hit back at critics of Arsenal\u2019s dependence on set pieces, saying he is disappointed the Premier League leaders do not score even more goals from dead-ball situations.<\/p>\n

Get all the latest football news, highlights and analysis delivered straight to your inbox with Fox Sports Sportsmail. Sign up now!!!<\/a><\/b><\/i><\/p>\n

Arteta\u2019s side have established a five-point lead at the top of the league thanks in large part to their success from set pieces \u2014 which has given rise to the nickname \u201cSet Piece FC\u201d.<\/p>\n

<\/amp-img><\/amp-iframe><\/div>\n

They equalled the Premier League single-season record for goals from corners with two in Sunday\u2019s 2-1 win over Chelsea to reach 16 for the campaign.<\/p>\n

But Arsenal\u2019s excellence since Nicolas Jover took over as set-piece coach has sparked criticism of their reliance on the tactic.<\/p>\n

The debate on whether set pieces are ruining football as a spectacle is raging, with Liverpool boss Arne Slot revealing he no longer enjoys watching some Premier League matches.<\/p>\n

\u201cFirst of all, you have to accept it. I think it\u2019s mainly here in the Premier League. If I watch other leagues, I don\u2019t think there\u2019s so much emphasis on set pieces,\u201d Slot said, adding that PL goalkeepers were given less protection than in other leagues.<\/p>\n

\u201cHere you can almost hit a goalkeeper in his face and the referee still says just go on.<\/p>\n

\u201cDo I like it? My football heart doesn\u2019t like it.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, most of the games I see in the Premier League are not for me a joy to watch.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut it\u2019s always interesting because it\u2019s so competitive, and that is what makes this league great, because there\u2019s so much competitiveness, everyone can beat everyone.\u201d<\/p>\n

READ MORE<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

Doomsday scenario in ultimate Ange revenge act as moment of truth revealed \u2014 PL Run Home<\/a><\/b><\/p>\n

\u2018That is scary\u2019: Inside Spurs\u2019 $500m fight for survival as grim pay details laid bare<\/a><\/b><\/p>\n

\u2018CHEAT\u2019: New Spurs boss\u2019 rage as relegation nightmare looms; Utd great\u2019s epic record \u2014 PL Wrap<\/a><\/b><\/p>\n

<\/amp-img>
Arsenal’ manager Mikel Arteta (C) celebrates a win with Gabriel Magalhaes and Eberechi Eze.<\/span>Source: AFP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Former Chelsea striker Chris Sutton, a Premier League title winner with Blackburn, said Arsenal will be the \u201cugliest\u201d Premier League champions if they go on to clinch the title.<\/p>\n

Arteta is unrepentant, insisting his only concern about the use of set-pieces is making sure Arsenal are even more efficient with them.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m upset that we don\u2019t score more, and that we concede as well,\u201d he told reporters on Tuesday, on the eve of a trip to Brighton.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe want to be the best and the most dominant team in every aspect of the game, and that\u2019s the trajectory and the aim of this team, and as a club, we want to be the same. So we try to do that.\u201d <\/p>\n

Asked if he was surprised at the criticism aimed at his side, Arteta replied: \u201cPart of the job.\u201d <\/p>\n

<\/amp-img>
Arne Slot, Manager of Liverpool.<\/span>Source: Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

City manager Pep Guardiola believes teams should focus on adapting to the set-piece strategy rather than complaining about the issue.<\/p>\n

Arteta, who worked under Guardiola at City before joining Arsenal, agrees with his fellow Spaniard\u2019s assessment.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow teams are adapting. Chelsea, look at the quality that they have, the amount of set-pieces they score. Manchester United as well. I was at Man City, I used to work a lot on them,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Undeterred by the claims that Arsenal will be \u201cugly\u201d champions, Arteta said: \u201cI don\u2019t know how you celebrate one goal different to another one. Maybe for YouTube it\u2019s nicer one or another. I don\u2019t know.<\/p>\n

\u201cI would like to play with three players extra in my own half to get some beautiful football. This is not the reality of football.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you want to watch that football, you have to go to a different country because in the Premier League, for the last two seasons or three seasons, this is not the case.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/amp-img>
Chelsea goalkeeper Robert Sanchez (R) punches the ball to clear after an Arsenal free kick.<\/span>Source: AFP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

PEP WEIGHS IN<\/b><\/p>\n

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola said teams must adapt to deal with set pieces after Slot\u2019s comments.<\/p>\n

Arsenal have been labelled \u201cSet Piece FC\u201d as a result of their prowess from dead ball situations and other sides are learning from their playbook.<\/p>\n

Speaking Tuesday, on the eve of title-chasing City\u2019s match against relegation-threatened Nottingham Forest, Guardiola said clubs had no choice but to learn to deal with the growing threat.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s part of the dynamics and you can complain (but) you have to adapt and it\u2019s part of the game,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The Spaniard, renowned for his fluid, possession-based football, said \u201cin some aspects\u201d he agreed with Slot, but explained that one of the fascinating aspects of football was the range of different styles.<\/p>\n

\u201cFootball has not been played in one way since the it has been created,\u201d he said. \u201cSo the football played in England is different from Spain, it\u2019s different in Italy, it\u2019s different and that\u2019s nice.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s why the Champions League is nice, different ways, even in that country every manager plays in a different way.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo it\u2019s nice, that\u2019s why it\u2019s so attractive. How boring would it be if all the managers and all the leagues played in the same way?<\/p>\n

\u201cSo if I like or don\u2019t like, it\u2019s my business, so if I don\u2019t like, I don\u2019t watch as a spectator, but it is what it is, I have to adapt. It\u2019s a question of how quickly you adapt.\u201d <\/p>\n

<\/amp-img>
Pep Guardiola, Manager of Manchester City, talks with Marc Guehi.<\/span>Source: Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

City have won their past six games in all competitions and are five points behind Premier League leaders Arsenal with a game in hand.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe last 10 games now start to be decisive,\u201d said the City boss. <\/p>\n

\u201cTwo Premier League games before the international break \u2014 we are five behind Arsenal so we can\u2019t drop points.\u201d <\/p>\n

Guardiola said City would make a call on the fitness of Erling Haaland and Nico O\u2019Reilly after Tuesday\u2019s training session.<\/p>\n

Norwegian striker Haaland missed Saturday\u2019s 1-0 win at Leeds after picking up a knock in training while O\u2019Reilly was forced off with an ankle problem at Elland Road.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Mikel Arteta has hit back at critics of Arsenal\u2019s dependence on set pieces, saying he is disappointed the Premier League leaders do not score even more goals from dead-ball situations. Get all the latest football news, highlights and analysis delivered straight to your inbox with Fox Sports Sportsmail. Sign up now!!! Arteta\u2019s side have established […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":231369,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6807],"tags":[70608,2228,18283,99,1192,6474,3056,13333,4046,40617,25743,70577,85,12089,980,1429,4042,70610,4015,149,70583,70607,2458,3272,70606,1415,2232,732,32760,1427,920,854,70609,15117,33479,70611,4037,4038,2457,2902,33983,1856,4043],"class_list":{"0":"post-231368","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-leagues-cups","8":"tag-06-gabriel-magalhaes","9":"tag-agence-france-presse","10":"tag-ankle-problem","11":"tag-brighton","12":"tag-champions-league","13":"tag-chris-sutton","14":"tag-city-boss","15":"tag-city-manager","16":"tag-club-league-logos","17":"tag-dead-ball-situations","18":"tag-dominant-team","19":"tag-doomsday-scenario","20":"tag-england","21":"tag-english-midfielder","22":"tag-erling-haaland","23":"tag-europe","24":"tag-fixture-lists","25":"tag-football-heart","26":"tag-football-match","27":"tag-football-news","28":"tag-grim-pay-details","29":"tag-gunners-boss-fires","30":"tag-italy","31":"tag-london","32":"tag-manager-plays","33":"tag-manchester-city-football-club","34":"tag-manchester-united-football-club","35":"tag-mikel-arteta","36":"tag-nicolas-jover","37":"tag-northern-europe","38":"tag-pep-guardiola","39":"tag-premier-league","40":"tag-relegation-nightmare","41":"tag-robert-sanchez","42":"tag-set-pieces","43":"tag-set-piece-strategy","44":"tag-single-club-league-player-publications","45":"tag-social-media-in-match","46":"tag-southern-europe","47":"tag-spain","48":"tag-title-winner","49":"tag-united-kingdom","50":"tag-video-emulation"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/231368","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=231368"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/231368\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/231369"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=231368"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=231368"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=231368"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}