Mikel Arteta claims his Arsenal side have no fear when playing against the Premier League’s top teams after defeating Liverpool in the Community Shield.
Since Arteta was appointed Arsenal have been impressive against the League’s top sides, defeating Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City and Manchester United.
That run of form is a great improvement on the Gunners’ previous record against the top four and the squad was often criticised for their mentality in those matches.
Arteta, however, claims his group have no fear when facing the Premier League’s biggest sides - as shown by their victory over Liverpool in the Community Shield on Saturday.
“Two days ago we started to have players back in training and I didn’t hear one excuse,” said Arteta.
“‘Oh they (Liverpool) had two weeks in Austria, better preparation'. None of that.
“When I was in the dressing room today I had the feeling they believed we could win. They didn’t feel any fear.
“They wanted to really go for it and believed they could win another trophy. And they showed from the first minute their courage and their passion.
“We know that if you want to fight for trophies you can't concede the amount of goal we have over the last few seasons, that’s for sure. But obviously with the ball in the attacking phase we must do a lot better.
“Today we had some periods where we showed we are developing in the right direction. Defensively we are solid, we are difficult to beat.
“Really, if we have the mindset that we have 11 players doing it, that it doesn’t matter who your name is, I think we have a really good chance.”