Mikel Arteta has singled out Tottenham’s Son Heung-min as the player he would have chosen to convert the crucial chance that might have put Arsenal at the forefront of the Premier League title race.
As the Gunners approach the season’s final weekend with their title hopes hinging on West Ham’s performance against Pep Guardiola’s team, Arteta reflected on what might have been if Spurs’ captain Son hadn’t been thwarted by City’s sub keeper Stefan Ortega in the dying minutes of Tuesday’s match.
Arteta remarked, “If I had to pick a player in the Premier League for that moment then it would have been him,” drawing parallels with basketball legend Michael Jordan’s experiences with high-stakes shots.
“Michael Jordan explained it many times, how many times you have the winning shot and how sometimes he didn’t always manage to do it. This is the beauty of the sport too, so what can you do?”
City’s subsequent victory over Tottenham means they are one win away from securing another title, but an upset could see Arsenal clinch their first championship since the 2004 ‘Invincibles’ by defeating Everton.
For Arteta, who previously assisted Guardiola at City during two title-winning seasons, such an outcome would rank as one of his most treasured accomplishments. “It would be one of the best days of my life,” he said.
“It is a big dream I didn’t achieve as a player. If I can do it, especially with the people I work with everyday, it will be some day. It was great (winning as an assistant). Lifting the trophy was beautiful.”
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Arteta believes the title battle has highlighted the “magic” of the Premier League. England’s top tier is the only one of Europe’s ‘big five’ domestic competitions where the championship race has gone down to the last weekend.
“The magic is already happening because this is what every football supporter wants and lives that it goes to the last game,” the Arsenal boss added.
“The last minute of the Premier League at this level, the most beautiful league in the world by far where you have two teams. This is what you want, this is why it’s the most competitive league in the world.
“The unpredictability is like a drug. You are still there, you still have to earn it and it’s uncertain. There are a lot of factors which can change things around very quickly but when you manage to do it, it’s phenomenal.”