Mikel Arteta urged his Arsenal players to “focus on us” after a 5-1 hammering of bitter rivals Manchester City gave their title hopes a major boost.
The Gunners produced a superb second-half performance to thrash the champions in a fixture that has become one of the Premier League’s spiciest grudge matches.
Academy graduate Myles Lewis-Skelly marked his crucial first goal for the club by mimicking Erling Haaland’s trademark celebration, while Gabriel taunted the Norwegian striker following Martin Odegaard’s opening goal.
Both appeared direct responses to Haaland’s behaviour in the fiery 2-2 draw between the clubs at the Etihad earlier this season. The 24-year-old celebrated John Stones’s late equaliser in that game by bouncing the ball off Gunners defender Gabriel’s head, and was then involved in altercations with both Arteta and Lewis-Skelly at the full-time whistle.
Haaland’s father, the former footballer Alfie Haaland, responded angrily to a picture of Lewis-Skelly’s celebration on social media, mocking Arsenal’s lack of recent trophy success in comparison to his son’s side.
“This Team that wins everything. Ehhhhh, not,” he wrote.
Asked about the two incidents following the game, Arteta said he had not seen them but said: “There’s nothing I want to discuss about that. That’s down to the players but they know my view on it and we have to focus on us.”
