Before facing each other in the Champions League, Mikel Arteta once admitted that he admired Diego Simeone. Now, the Arsenal coach seems to be bringing that admiration to a new level, as his style is increasingly similar to the strategist of Atletico Madrid.
Simeone is one of the most respected coaches in European football. He not only won many titles but also turned Atletico into a true force - a team famous for its disciplined, unbeatable playing style.
However, Simeone is also famous for tactical tricks, from time-wasting, tactical fouls or maximizing dead ball situations to protect the advantage.
However, comparing with Simeone is not necessarily negative. In 14 years of leading Atletico, the Argentine strategist has twice won La Liga, twice won the Europa League, two European Super Cups and twice reached the Champions League final.
He built his reputation by competing fairly with two giants Barcelona and Real Madrid - similar to what Arteta is doing at Arsenal.
In 6 years, Arteta has turned Arsenal from a mid-range team into a real candidate for the Premier League title, capable of competing with Manchester City, Liverpool and other big rivals.
It is true that Arsenal spent a lot of money to build the squad, but defeating Pep Guardiola's Man City has never been an easy task. Therefore, the "Gunners" have found their own path and now they are only 8 matches away from the championship. If that makes Brighton coach Fabian Hurzeler uncomfortable, then Arteta probably won't bother.
Labeling Arsenal as "anti-football", only knowing how to waste time and taking advantage of dead balls after the 1-0 victory over Brighton is somewhat unfair.
In fact, The Gunners have had many excellent performances this season: 4-0 victory over Atletico Madrid at the Emirates in October, explosive second half against Bayern Munich, two 4-1 wins against Tottenham and the destruction of Aston Villa after Christmas.
However, in recent weeks Arsenal has shown signs of losing strength when having to strain themselves on four fronts: Premier League, Champions League, FA Cup and Carabao Cup.
The victory over Brighton was not easy at all. It was a real battle, where Arsenal had to fight, endure pressure and find ways to protect their advantage. According to data from Opta, the total time Arsenal's plays were resumed in the match was up to 30 minutes 51 seconds - the highest in a Premier League match this season. The rolling time was only 53 minutes 58 seconds, equivalent to 53.5% of the total match time.
However, Arsenal is not the team that wastes the most time in the league. Statistics show that Sunderland, Brentford, Crystal Palace, Newcastle and Leeds even took longer to start the match again.
The important thing is that Arsenal is doing what is necessary to win. Gabriel became a solid stopper in defense, while Piero Hincapie also played bravely. Thanks to that, the "Gunners" maintained the victory and widened the lead gap to 7 points.
In the next 3 rounds, Arsenal will play against Man City. If they beat Everton, the gap could be widened to 10 points - even though they have played 2 more matches - before Guardiola's team visits West Ham.
Suddenly, the Premier League title is within Arsenal's reach. It has been 22 years since the last time the "Gunners" were crowned champions, when they won the 2003-2004 season championship with an unbeaten record and beautiful football.
But football does not only have one path to victory. After three consecutive seasons of second place and when his feet began to weaken, Arsenal did not want another runner-up medal.
Arteta was once criticized for being too cautious. Now, when he is ready to change to win, criticism continues to appear. But all those controversies will become meaningless if Arsenal lifts the championship trophy at the end of the season.
