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Arsenal players exchanged angry words with each other in a clear meeting after manager Mikel Arteta summoned the squad to identify the reasons for their poor start to the season.
Sources told ESPN that Arteta brought the entire first-team squad together on Tuesday in a bid to remedy a drop in form that left them 14th in the Premier League.
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Arteta has sought to rally his players and invited for a frank exchange of views while informing them that he continues to investigate the source of the leaks which led to a rift in the training ground between Dani Ceballos and David Luiz.
Once this first meeting was over, the coaching staff left but the players stayed behind to hold a second impromptu discussion on their own which was described by several sources as “stormy” and “intense”.
Sources claim this second conversation involved an angry but constructive dialogue with “finger pointing” and high voices, but ended amicably with a firm desire to rally with Arteta and improve their performance in Premier League. Arsenal declined to comment when contacted by ESPN.
The Gunners beat Rapid Vienna 4-1 on Thursday with a completely modified starting lineup and while the team were clearly uplifted by the return of 2,000 fans, sources claimed that the increased energy and dynamism of their display could also be attributed to a renewed determination. meetings earlier in the week.
Arsenal face a huge test in Sunday’s Tottenham clash with their North London rivals at the top of the table. The Gunners have won just one of their last five league games and were beaten 2-1 at home by Wolves last Sunday.
The players were then released on Monday before arriving at London club Colney base on Tuesday for a regular session and meeting to identify areas for improvement.
Arteta is hoping for a reaction to Spurs as a loss would put them 11 points behind Jose Mourinho’s side.
Speaking to Sky Sports on Friday afternoon, Arteta said: “I think this is the perfect game to get back up, to regenerate some confidence in the league because in the other competitions we have been very good but we we need a big result and I can’t think of any better scenario than that: going to beat them and drastically changing things in one game. “
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