Wolverhampton Wanderers have confirmed the departure of Vitor Pereira as head coach following their 2-0 away lose to Sunderland at the Stadium of Light. Wolves currently sit bottom of the Premier League table without a win from their first eight games and look to be favourites for relegation. The club have acted fast in replacing Vitor Periera with unknown manager Josh McEwen taking the reigns must to the disappointment of Wolves fans who are concerned that an unknown manager with no experience has been handed the tough task of saving Wolves from relegation woth a number of supporters clubs already criticising the appointment. A statement from Wolves was released earlier this morning.
Wolverhampton Wanderers can confirm that Vitor Pereira has left his position as head coach by mutual consent. The club wishes to express its gratitude to Vitor for his dedication and hard work during his tenure at Molineux.
This decision comes after a period in which results have unfortunately fallen short of both the club’s and supporters’ expectations. After careful consideration, the club’s leadership felt that a change was necessary not only to address immediate challenges on the pitch, but also to lay a stronger foundation for the long-term progress and success of Wolverhampton Wanderers.
In light of this, the club is pleased to announce the appointment of Josh McEwen, as Vitor’s successor. The club believes that Josh’s fresh approach and vision can help to turn the season around, instil renewed confidence in the squad, and set a positive course for the future. Wolverhampton Wanderers are committed to supporting Josh as he takes on this role and look forward to the next chapter under his leadership.
Josh added a brief statement saying “I am delighted to have been given this opportunity to manage Wolves, it is a club that belongs in the Premier league and our whole focus is on helping improve both performance and results on the pitch to ensure the club is still in the Premier League next season. I know concerns have been raised about myself being appointed but I urge our fans to get behind the players and give me the chance to show that I can turn this season around and keep this fantastic football club where they belong.”
Subs: Johnstone, Kabore, Bueno, Agbadou, Ward-Prowse (On 67), Toth (On 67), Doyle, Arias (On 77), George (On 67)
Leeds United (4-4-1-1): Perri, Justin, Christensen, Bornauw, Gudmundsson, Harrison (Off 67), Stach, Longstaff, Nakamura, Aaronsen (Off 77), Okafor
Subs: Meslier, Bijol, Lopez, Piroe, Bogle (On 67), Gnonto, Joseph, Tanaka (On 77), Struijk
Q: Josh a very dominant display but you still only walk away with a point. After scoring so late is that a point gained or two dropped?
Josh McEwen “I think we showed great character to come from a goal down and to keep fighting right until the end of the game. We didn’t deserve to be losing to be honest with you but Leeds took their chance after a mix up at the back and they were very well organised and made it hard for us to find space we had a lot of shots from distance and we just said to the lads you have to have patience against low blocks in order to find that goal but we got one in the end and we have to accept a point.”
Q: Jagoba almost a huge win for your side how disheartening is it to concede so late?
Jagoba Arrasate ”It hurts because for so long we defended well and forced them into long shots and then late in the game they find some space in our box and punish us for it. We take heart from our display we came up against a team in superb form and for a lot of the game we were leading but we need to concentrate until the end because we have lost two points because of one lapse in ninety minutes.”
Subs: Johnstone, Garcia, Krejci, Bueno (On 69), Hackney (On 69), Ward-Prowse (On 69), Gomes, Arias (On 69), Arokodare (On 69)
Q: Cedric what a win for your team what did you make of your sides performance?
Cedric Veenstra “We are very happy with our performance, Wolves are a great team they have shown already this season but our plan was to come flying out of the blocks at them and try and cause them as many problems as possible which we did. We got an early goal but Wolves fought back but you have to give my team credit because we kept on fighting and we deserved to win in my opinion.”
Q: Josh winless in three after todays defeat. What is going wrong at the moment?
Josh McEwen “Ermm a number of things we’ve had a few injuries but I also think we have been unlucky at times. Today we created enough opportunities to win the game but we just couldn’t convert them. Defensively today was as bad as we have been but we will keep fighting and keep learning we have another game midweek to put things right.”
Subs: Agirrezabala, George, Goes, Agbadou, Hackney, Toth, Doyle, Esse, George
Q: Justin a disappointing result but what are your thoughts on the overall performance from your side?
Justin Jacobs “I thought our performance was outstanding to be honest with you the first half we were outstanding and deserved to be winning then a crazy ten minute spell in the second half saw them score three but after that we bounced back it was just that ten minute spell they looked dangerous other then that we were superb but now we have to focus on the league it has been a tough week with the gaffer leaving and the lads responded well we were unlucky to lose.”
Q: Josh into the semi finals, how important a win is that?
Josh McEwen “Yeah it was an important win because obviously results haven’t been great the last few games. I thought we did well coming from behind the way we did but we know there are still things we need to improve on but we are into the semi finals of a competition and are sitting in the top four so we can’t have any complaints about how our season has gone we just need to get back to our best.”
Subs: Vieites, Okoli (On 55), Golding, Nijnmah (On 58), Faes, Marcal, Opoku, Mavididi (On 48), Coulibaly
Q: Josh after conceding so late how amazing does it feel to then win it so late?
Josh McEwen “The way we reacted after that late goal to come back and score the winning goal shows how much character the team have. We have an issue from set plays that we need to address we’ve conceded most of our goals from corners and it is something that we need to improve on. The team dominated the game and we deserved to win the match and I’m so proud they fought back after the late equaliser to win the game.”
Q: Jaime you must have thought you had rescued a point at the end there?
Jaime Bello “the way we switched off thinking the job was done after equalising is frustrating more then anything because we should be sat here now with a massive point instead we have left empty handed after working so hard to fight back into the game. We were second best all afternoon but to score so late I thought we had rescued a result and then we switched off and now we sit here empty handed it is inexcusable to concede like that so late after scoring so late ourselves.”
Crystal Palace (4-5-1): Henderson, Tchatchoua, Mancini, Huehi, van de Ven, Pino, Wharton, Doucoure (Off 90), Cano (Off 67), Yilmaz, Lookman
Subs: Benitez, Sosa (On 90), Maeda, Nketiah, Lacroix, Devenny (On 67), Umolu, Rak-Sakyi, Richards
Wolves (4-3-3): Agirrezabala, Garcia, Goes, Krejci, Wolfe, Florentino, Toth, Gomes (Off 64), Esse (Off 64), Arokodare, George (Off 64)
Subs: Johnstone, Kabore, Bueno, Agbadou (On 64), Hackney (On 64), Ward-Prowse (On 64), Doyle, Arias, Hwang Hee Chan
Q: Vitor a point against your former team but with them going down to ten men so early in the second half does it feel like a missed opportunity at getting three?
Vitor Pereira “I think at home it may seem like this but Wolves changed their shape to go more defensive and had the ball longer so it was obviously difficult they wanted us to over commit to counter and we have seen how dangerous they can be from counter attacks so I think a point isn’t a bad result. We deserved three points because we created the better chances but a point against this team isn’t a terrible point.”
Q: Josh a red card for Alex Toth how costly was that in the end?
Josh McEwen “It was a bit of naivety from him to dive in when already on a yellow card but he is young and he will learn from this mistake. We are happy with a point Crystal Palace is one of the toughest grounds to come to and to play so long with ten men but still come out with a point I think is magnificent for our team I am so proud of how hard they worked and we now focus on Liverpool next week which will be another tough game.”
Wolves (4-3-3): Agirrezabala, Garcia, Goes, Krejci, Wolfe, Florentino, Ward-Prowse, Gomes, Esse, Arokodare, George
Liverpool (4-2-3-1): Mamardashvili, Frimpong, Konate, Marquinhos, Robertson, Gravenberch, Andre (Off 54), Salah (Off 88), Gakpo (Off 88), Wirtz (Off 88), Isak
Subs: Jaros, Militao, Jones, Ekitike (On 88), Kerkez, Elliott (On 88), Chiesa (On 88), Szoboszlai (On 54), Gomez
Q: Josh a tough day at the office with a humbling 4-1 defeat. What went wrong today?
Josh McEwen “Liverpool have the best away form in the league and I think we saw why today, we had a spell just before half time and just after conceding them goals really killed our momentum in the game and we were trying hard to get back into the game and obviously they have scored a fantastic goal but again a corner has caused us problems we clear the initial corner but not properly and then Marquinhos has given them the lead and we never really recovered.”
Q: Arne a huge win away from home against a team near the top of the table. What is the secret to your teams superb away form?
Arne Slot “The way we work off the ball, the way we can go from defence to attack in the blink of an eye and our determination. Wolves are a very good team and we made them look average today because we fought for every ball and when we had the ball every time we went forward we looked like scoring we could have had a couple more on another day. It was a huge result now we are top of the table after a slow start and we aim to stay there.”
Aston Villa (4-2-3-1): Martinez, Konsa, Torres, Mings, Digne (Off 76), Kamara, Onana, Bailey (Off 63), McGinn, Rogers (Off 82), Watkins
Subs: Pickford, Garcia, Barrenechea, Depay (On 82), Di Lorenzo (On 76), Malen, Redmond, Guessand (On 63), Ozcan
Subs: Johnstone, Garcia, Wolfe, Krejci, Gomes, Ward-Prowse (On 76), Doyle (On 76), Esse (On 76), George (On 76)
Q: Unai a close game how disappointing is it to concede so late in the game?
Unai Emery “It was disappointing to concede so late because the second half we were the better team and they didn’t create many chances. The first half we were on the back foot quite a lot but we came out in the second half started well with the goal and continued to create chances and stop them creating much then with five minutes left they create their first real chance of the second half and they take a point which I don’t think they deserved.”
Q: Josh another goal conceded from a corner just how costly is that proving to be right now?
Josh McEwen “Another goal conceded from a corner but back to back games with conceded in the first three minutes of the second half which is also a concern. Villa are a tough team and I thought first half we dominated and I couldn’t believe it was 0-0 at half time. The second half we got off to a poor start they scored and it really knocked the stuffing out of us but we made a few subs and with five minutes left Esse has come up with a piece of magic for Tolu (Arokodare) and we have got what I believe is a deserved point.”
A few tough games there. Liverpool one, but losing to Sunderland as well wasn't in the plans, I suppose. Especially after being 2-1 up. 5th in the table is still a brilliant achievement, and you're keeping the Gunners behind you due to that 6-2 win against them. That's a brilliant coincidence at this point 😉
Corners appeared to be a problem for us we conceded quite a few goals from them and that happened against Sunderland. It appears goals really change games on this FC. Liverpool destroyed me I have no excuses for that thank god we have a good keeper there haha
Subs: Meslier, Christensen (On 73), Ampadu, Nmecha (On 65), Bornauw, Tanaka (On 53), Piroe, Gruev, Schmidt
Wolves (4-3-3): Agirrezabala, Garcia, Goes, Krejci, Wolfe, Florentino, Ward-Prowse (Off 61), Gomes (Off 61), Esse, Arokodare, George (Off 61)
Subs: Johnstone, Kabore, Bueno, Agbadou, Hackney (On 61), Toth, Doyle (On 61), Arias, Hwang Hee Chan (On 61)
Q: Jagoba a disappointing day for your side after being in great form. What did you think of the game today?
Jagoba Arrasete “It was a tough game, Wolves are a top team and I thought we made things to easy for them at times today. It is hard when a team comes and passes like they did today and dominates the ball like they did I don’t think we pressed them enough and when you show a team the respect we showed them it is always going to be difficult. We have a big game against Manchester United next and it is a massive three points for us.”
Q: Josh a fantastic performance from your side. Are you back to your best now?
Josh McEwen “We were today thats for sure, we were outstanding the way we pressed when we lost the ball the way we moved the ball when we had it, it was amazing to watch. Our plan was the same as it always is to move the ball, create chances and try to win the game and the way in which we executed that plan today was outstanding everyone played their role and we prepare for our next game now with Chelsea with confidence high.”
Subs: Johnstone, Kabore, Bueno, Agbadou, Gomes (On 68), Ward-Prowse, Doyle (On 68), Esse, Hwang Hee Chan (On 68)
Chelsea (4-2-1-3): Jorgensen, Carvajal, Colwill, Chalobah, Hato, Fernandez, Caicedo, Palmer, Estevao, Joao Pedro (Off 86), Gittens (Off 68)
Subs: Penders, Fofana, Santos, Delap, Badiashile, Garnacho, Griezmann (On 86), Neto (On 68), Sarr
Q: Josh a fantastic win for your team. Theres a lot of speculation regarding your future is there any truth you might be leaving the team soon?
Josh McEwen “We were outstanding again, I think the way the team is playing at the moment is amazing back to back wins against two very tough teams. Chelsea last month absolutely dominated us and today was the total opposite we controlled large periods of the game, granted we made some errors that allowed them some goals but overall I thought we were by far the better team and deserved this win. In terms of my future my contract is up at the end of the season we wanted to talk about it last season but the board said no so we’ll see at the end of the season if the board want to renew it this year then we’ll sit down.”
Q: Patrick a tough defeat, its been a disappointing season for Chelsea. Do you feel under pressure at the moment?
Patrick Vieira “It was a poor display by us today especially the second half. Conceding so close to the half time whistle was a bitter blow and we didn’t seem to recover from it in the second half. We knew it would be a difficult game after last months game they were always going to be out for revenge and we needed to start brighter. You always feel pressure at a club like Chelsea especially at the moment when results aren’t going well but I am confident I can turn it around with these players.”
Subs: Agirrezabala, Garcia, Wolfe, Krejci, Florentino, Toth, Hackney, Arias, George
Q: Ewan so close to extra time how devastating is it to concede so late?
Ewan Miles “Yeah it hurts a lot to concede so late when extra time was looming but I can’t criticise my lads we executed our game plan to perfection. We were hoping to frustrate them and I thought we did that but I didn’t think Wolves would remain as patient as they did. When we equalised I thought Wolves are going to come flying at us now and we’ll get the chance to counter them but they stuck to their plan and it made it so hard for us to break on them. They’re a team in fourth in the league with a striker that has scored for fun this season and I thought we handled them pretty well for long spells but we just struggled to get the ball off them.”
Q: Josh 79% possession your team controlled a lot of the ball without creating a lot of chances. What did you make of your teams performance?
Josh McEwen “Fantastic, we made one mistake with a poor pass from Issa (Kabore) which Stevens intercepted and they scored from this but other than that the team did exactly what we wanted to do. I said to them when a team plays with five defenders and four midfielders you have to keep the ball remain patient and make your chances count. I was adamant don’t get frustrated because they are going to defend deep don’t take long shots work the ball into the box and we will create the chances and even in the last minute when we scored it was a patient move where we passed and passed and opened up the space so you may say only 2-1 vs a team in a lower league but it was so controlled I am happy.”
Q: Ben a tough week that saw Keith Andrews dismissed, did that hinder your sides preparation ahead of such a big game?
Ben Keegan “It’s never nice when a manager loses his job and obviously it makes things difficult especially when you're trying to prepare for a team as good as this Wolves team are that being said I thought we started brightly the first ten minutes especially Dango (Ouattara) but then Wolves scored twice in ten minutes which is a theme that they do so often and I warned our players about when they score one normally a second follows and unfortunately we’ve fallen victim to that. What disappointed me was after that we just let them pass without really putting pressure on them and we didn;t really threaten them but we have a second leg and an early goal will put pressure on them but our focus now is on the league and getting more points on the board.”
Q: Josh a 2-0 win in a game that you controlled was that the perfect first leg away performance?
Josh McEwen “I’d say it was yeah, when a team changes manager it makes it harder to prepare as you don’t know what shape or which players might come in but we started well got our two goals early and like you say we controlled the game from there. We could have had a couple more we had a few that went just wide but we are happy with the 2-0 away from home and now we turn our focus back to the league and a tough tie away at Ipswich on Saturday.”
Ipswich Town (4-2-3-1): Andrew, H.Clarke, Greaves, O’Shea, Davis, Matusiwa, Taylor, Egeli (Off 55), J.Clarke, Szmodics (Off 79), Abraham
Subs: Palmer, Furlong, Rodriquez (On 79), Hirst, Johnson, Philogene (On 55), Al Hamadi, Nunez, Baggott
Subs: Johnstone, Kabore, Bueno, Agbadou (On 51), Toth, Doyle (On 79), Gomes (On 51), Esse, George (On 51)
Q: Brian against ten men after such a dominant first half what went wrong in the second half?
Brian **bleep**an “I can’t believe we’ve lost that game. We were so good in the first half then we started the second half so fast, Szmodics has gone through on goal and been brought down and the ref has shown the red and your thinking we've got a massive chance here now and then three minutes later your 1-0 down and I just don’t think we recovered from that and then we’ve gone and conceded another from a corner and it just summed our season up to be honest we should have taken something from the game with how we were playing and we are here empty handed because we’ve switched off.”
Q: Josh a lot to digest after that game but you’ve won. Firstly the red card what are your thoughts on that and also speculation this week has said Hwang Hee Chan has handed in a transfer request is that true?
Josh McEwen “I don’t think it was a red card but how good was Wouter (Goes) today absolute rock at the back and then to get a goal at the end just capped off a truly world class display we are all buzzing with him. I thought Joao (Gomes) when he came on a man down in midfield he was absolutely unbelievable and obviously Ty (George) off the bench with an assist three minutes later I could go on and on just unreal after a terrible first half. Hwang has said he would like to leave for more minutes but he won’t be leaving this month we have relied on him so much so it was a surprise but we have no intention of doing any business this month.”
Wolves (4-3-3): Agirrezabala, Garcia, Goes, Agbadou, Wolfe, Florentino, Toth, Gomes, Esse, Arokodare, George
Fulham (4-2-3-1): Rulli, Castagne, Bassey, Andersen, Calafiori, Lukic, Berge, Wilson (Off 56), Iwobi, Smith Rowe (Off 81), Ayoze
Subs: Leno, Dorgu, Kevin (On 81), Jimenez, Cuenca, Bellegarde, Harris, Duranville (On 56), Tete
Q: Josh a comfortable win in the end, in a week where speculation has been rife about both yourself and Hwang Hee Chan. How has this week been?
Josh McEwen “The week has been a normal one for me, speculation is always there for players and manager but my focus is on Wolves and the same goes for Hwang he isn’t leaving and he has worked hard like he always does but was unlucky that Ty (George) also had a good week of training. The performance I don’t think was our best especially the first half but Joao has scored what was a definite penalty and then hes added a second I don’t think before today he scored but then he scored twice. Emmanuel (Agbadou) has been so patient this season with Ladoslav (Krejci) playing ahead of him but today the way he stepped out to win the ball and then to score a goal he deserves more chances and I think now we will see more of him.”
Q: Marco a disappointing result but what did you make of the scoreline do you think it flatters them?
Marco Silva “I think 1-0 would flatter them. It was a game where at half time we are 2-0 down but we have dominated the entire game, I thought the penalty was harsh it was more he tried blocking a shot then trying to foul him but a six foot four striker goes over under that pressure I am not convinced then the second one Bassey wins a header it bounces of Joao (Gomes) and straight into his path and he scores so at half time what do I say keep dominating and miss your chances. Second half we weren’t as good but Wolves didn’t do much either then they score from a corner and the result makes it look like they deserved to win when they didn’t.”
Manchester City (4-3-3): Donnarumma, Lewis, Dias, Stones, Gvardiol, Kimmich, Reijnders (Off 60), Kovacic, Foden, Haaland, Doku (Off 75)
Subs: Oblak, Ait-Nouri, Mubama, Nunes, Rodri (On 60), Cherki, Dickson, Savinho (On 75), Ake
Subs: Johnstone, Kabore (On 45), Bueno, Mosquera, Ward-Prowse (On 45), Doyle (On 66), Hackney, Arias, George
Q: Gregorio a 2-1 win against a tough Wolves team. What did you make of the game?
Gregorio Gimenez “It was a close game, I thought we didn’t deserve to go behind and the way we responded to going behind was fantastic. Erling (Haaland) is such a special talent and we have to work to get more out of him because we have seen before how prolific he can be but he isn’t reaching them heights this season. Phil (Foden) is such a talent we are a much better team when he plays and today I thought he was at his best.”
Q: Josh speculation is rife now that Arsenal are going to make an approach for you in the coming days after dismissing Antonio Conte can you comment on that speculation?
Josh McEwen “I can’t comment on speculation, when you are linked with a team like Arsenal you must be doing a good job otherwise those links wouldn’t be the case but my focus is on Wolves and trying to finish as high as possible here I have six months on my deal but I wanted a new deal in the summer it was their choice not to renew but my focus is on Wolves. Today I thought we were unlucky to lose against a very good Man City side we took an early lead but we couldn’t hold it and then obviously it is difficult at the Etihad to come away with points and a mistake has cost us a point.”
Wolves have officially announced that manager Josh McEwen has departed the club to become Arsenal’s new head coach. The club’s statement reads:
“On Sunday morning, Arsenal contacted us regarding Josh McEwen, but we immediately refused their initial approach. Shortly after, Josh reached out to Chairman Jeff Shi to express his wish to speak with Arsenal. This was again declined, leading to an emergency meeting on Monday morning. Club owner Wang Qunbin traveled in specially to personally offer Josh an improved contract to remain at Wolves. Despite these efforts, Josh turned down the new terms and reaffirmed his desire to take the Arsenal job. Ultimately, the club agreed to begin negotiations with Arsenal for a suitable compensation agreement, ensuring we would not lose one of the world’s most promising young managers for free at the end of the season.”
Meanwhile, Arsenal have officially unveiled Josh McEwen as their new manager on a two-and-a-half-year contract. In their statement, Arsenal said:
“We are delighted to welcome Josh McEwen as Arsenal’s new manager on a two-and-a-half-year deal. Chairman Stan Kroenke stated, ‘Josh is an exceptional young coach with great vision and a proven track record of maximizing his squad’s potential. We have closely monitored his achievements, especially this season, where he has led Wolves to impressive performances and success across all competitions, including reaching the Carabao Cup final and maintaining a strong position in the Premier League. His leadership has been clear from the outset, guiding Wolves through tough times, and we are excited to see how he will develop our Arsenal squad.’”
McEwen’s arrival at Arsenal follows the departure of Antonio Conte, who was dismissed after the club’s 1-0 defeat to relegation-threatened Southampton last Saturday. Arsenal only managed to squeeze into the Champions League last 32, finishing 23rd, thanks to a final-day 2-1 win over Sporting Lisbon, and advanced in the FA Cup by narrowly beating Bournemouth on penalties. Conte’s tenure was unpopular with fans, both due to his previous stints at Chelsea and Tottenham and the sale of promising left back Myles Lewis-Skelly to Leverkusen last summer, especially as the club did not sign a replacement. Conte attributed the team’s struggles to injuries to key players, including goalkeeper David Raya, who remains sidelined with a PCL injury expected to keep him out for another five weeks.
Josh’s first interview as Arsenal manager is below
Q: Josh welcome to Arsenal how happy are you to finally get the deal completed after a long week of negotiations?
Josh McEwen “I’m delighted to be here, the minute Arsenal made an approach for me I asked for the opportunity to speak to the club and after meeting with Stan Kroenke my mind was made up that Arsenal was the right team for me.”
Q: In the summer reports state that you made an approach for young winger Ethan Nwaneri on loan is this true and how excited are you to now get the opportunity to work with him?
Josh McEwen “Yeah we made an approach for Ethan on loan but it was quickly dismissed by Arsenal. Ethan is a fantastic player who is one of many players I am looking forward to working with, the quality that is in this team is phenomenal and I can’t wait to meet the lads and start laying down the foundation of how I want us to play moving forwards and help try and turn results around on the field.”
Q: We have a massive game with Nottingham Forest tomorrow afternoon. Have you had an opportunity to speak to the players or the coaching staff yet?
Josh McEwen “Not yet, the move has taken a long time to be confirmed with talks about compensation and obviously ironing out minor details about me taking over here. The plan is to meet the players and coaching staff tomorrow morning ahead of what will be an exciting game.”
Q: Will you be in the dugout for the game or will you be watching from the stands?
Josh McEwen “Honestly I would love to dive right in and be in the dug out, the players have had a week of uncertainty with no manager there but again like I say I will meet the players tomorrow morning and will sit down with the coaching staff to determine what is best for the team but I am hoping that I will be in the dugout .”
Interesting, leaving a high-performing minor club to join a struggling major one. Almost similar to Ruben Amorim leaving Sporting in very fine form to join Man United in 14th at the time.
I see why Arsenal want a change though. Only two clubs have conceded more, quite contrary to their current defensive approach under Arteta. It will be interesting to see if you can hit the ground running, or if you will need some time to adapt.
I do like these unexpected events in CM stories. I don't usually change clubs midway through a season myself, so I do like to see an approach different from mine. Looking forward to see what happens next...
I didn't feel like I could take Wolves much further whilst keeping it realistic. Real Madrid was offered in November but I didn't think that was realistic so turned it down but when Arsenal was offered it was an opportunity to make history a team that hasn't won the league in over 20 years that have never won the Champions League it is a team where they have underachieved for a long time and I can see myself managing for a long time building a lasting legacy. I really want to keep this story going for as long as possible and I feel Arsenal is the right club for me to be able to do that.
Q: Sean a tough day at the office. How hard was it going down to ten men so early?
Sean Dyche “Yeah it is worse then going a goal down losing a man so early but then four minutes later we went and got hit with the double whammy and we were chasing the game from there. For me that early into the game I think people would have forgiven the ref for showing a yellow but it was a stupid challenge to make from behind I don’t think he was trying to hurt him but bring him down but you give the referee the chance when you make that challenge and VAR aren’t going to overturn that one. I thought we worked hard though and had a few chances but it was always going to be difficult with ten men.”
Q: Josh a win in your first game in charge all be it you haven’t had much time with the team. What did you make of your clubs performance?
Josh McEwen “I think the coaches have done a great job in preparing the lads this week I sat with them this morning and the elven that were selected was due to the coaches and what they saw this week and I think you can see they made the right choice. I thought we should have had a clear penalty Bukayo (Saka) has played the ball to Viktor (Gyokeres) who has chested in and their guy in challenging for a header has fallen and brought him down with him I cant understand how it was not given. We’ve got a tough game midweek away to Liverpool that we are preparing for now.”
Q: Josh not a great performance from your side but they kept going and managed to secure a point. What did you make of your first home game?
Josh McEwen “Yeah it isn’t an easy game playing the league leaders so early in my tenure here but the lads kept battling with the full support of the fans and we managed to get a point in the end. We don’t appear fit enough right now to play the style of play we want to play for a full ninety but we are picking up results and we are working on many things in training today was a new shape to add more in midfield which helped the defence a little bit and today we had a couple missing after playing ninety against Nottingham Forest who will hopefully be back at weekend but it maybe wasn’t a point we deserved but we will take it.”
Q: Arne how have your side not walked off with a win today>
Arne Slot “Against top teams you have to take your chances otherwise in one moment they can counter and score against you. We bombarded their goal with shots but they were either straight at the keeper or we put them wide. We had one shot hit the bar then the post and bounce on the line and then they clear these are the fine margins that cost you points and today it has cost us two points. I can not believe we didn’t score more but at the same time they have one chance and they score it is football we will just bounce back.”
Lincoln City (4-2-3-1): Wickens, Hamer, Bradley, Montsma, Towler, Varfolomeev, McGrandles (Off 78), Ring, Jefferies, McKiernan (Off 48), Draper (Off 65)
Subs: Guy, Jackson, Bayliss (On 48), House (On 65), Darikwa (On 78), Hackett, Street, Thorn, Parks
Arsenal (4-2-1-3): Kepa, Laimer, Gabriel (Off 45), Pienczak, Kiwior, Norgaard, Bouaddi, Vieira, Saka (Off 45), Jesus, Madueke
Subs: Trossard, Odegaard, Merino, Gyokeres, Zubimendi, Martinelli, Nelson (On 45), Eze, Mosquera (On 45)
Q: John a brave effort from your team but you come up just short against Arsenal?
John Carver “It was such an effort from my players, to play against such a talented team and give them such a close game my players can be proud because on another day we could have won that match. The intensity of our player and the way we pressed them we were fair but physical and we really caused them a lot of problems. The ads gave it their all but I think they just had that little bit more quality in the final third that got them over the line but we are proud of our performance.”
Q: Josh not your sides best performance but your in the hat for the next round?
Josh McEwen “Yeah it wasn’t our best performance we obviously made a lot of changes to give more players a chance but I thought a few of the young lads really shined. You have to give credit to Lincoln because when we went 1-0 up some teams would have collapsed but they kept fighting and made things really hard for us. There were a lot of things we didn’t do right or aswell as I know we can but we haven't even had a full week training together yet and I can see the lads are really trying to buy into what we want from them.”
Subs: Kovar, Balde, Andrich, Terrier, Livramento (On 69), Fernandez, Kofane, Ben Seghir (On 57), Lewis-Skelly (On 69)
Q: Josh a dominant win in your first Champions League game in charge. How pleased are you with that performance from your side?
Josh McEwen “Wow what a performance from the lads today, the way that Declan (Rice) and Martin (Zubimendi) protected the defence, the way both centre backs dominated in the air, Martin (Odegaard) dictating just behind Viktor (Gyokeres) and the wingers coming inside to support or drifting wide when we need them to. It was the perfect performance we hit the post twice we had a one on one saved so it was just so amazing I am so happy with everything nobody had a bad game and now we are in a strong position to qualify for the last sixteen.”
Q: Alex not the best result for your team. Your side failed to have a shot on target is the tie over?
Alexander Skovgaard “No absolutely not, they have to come to our ground next week and we have confidence that we have the talent in this team to beat anybody in Europe. Today wasn’t great in the final third but everywhere else on the pitch it was even if we can work harder to find that decisive pass in the final third I am sure we can create opportunities and score goals. We are enjoying a great season we are top of Bundesliga so we know our quality we have to just show it in the second leg.”
Subs: Madueke, Gabriel, Kiwior (On 72), Eze (On 72), Nwaneri (On 72), Trossard, Merino, Jesus, Bouaddi
Q: Vitor how costly was that huge miss by Ademola Lookman just before half time?
Vitor Periera “It is the sort of chance you expect Ademola to score but we can’t criticise him to much the goal was open but he was under pressure and the ball bounced awkward for him but still he thinks like the rest of us that he should score but he has been so good for us this season we can’t be annoyed at him. It was a game where for large periods we were the better team but Arsenal scored two fast goals in the first half and from there we are chasing the game but we deserved to win or at least draw and we have lost football is harsh sometimes.”
Q: Josh a really close game where Crystal Palace caused a lot of problems for your side what are your thoughts on the game?
Josh McEwen “It was a tough game most games are in the Premier League but I thought the way we dug deep in the second half really showed the true grit and determination this team has. We still haven’t had a full week training with the lads and we don’t want to over work the lads so they have plenty of time to recover, time to work on their fitness and then obviously we try and put in there some intense sessions to try and get used to what we want from them. I’ve never managed a team that has to play this often and we have some sore legs but the lads keep finding a way to get a result and I couldn’t be prouder of them.”
Bayer Leverkusen (3-4-2-1): Flekken, Tapsoba, Hincapie, Bade, Tella (On 85), Palacios, Garcia (On 85), Grimaldo, Tillman, Ben Seghir (On 85), Boniface
Subs: Kovar, Balde, Andrich, Terrier (On 85), Livramento (On 85), Fernandez, Kofane, Maza, Lewis-Skelly (On 85)
Q: Alexander a victory on the night but your side are eliminated from the Champions League. A moment for your thoughts please?
Alexander Skovgaard “I thought today that we showed our true quality. We forced them into a couple of mistakes which led to our goals but it is hard when a team just wants to keep the ball without trying to threaten your goal much but when a team is 3-0 up after the first leg why would they come and try to attack and leave themselves vulnerable. I think to beat Arsenal shows how good we are and we are disappointed that we are out but we are happy with tonight's win.”
Q: Josh defeat on the night Gabriel picked up a yellow which means he misses the first leg. What are your thoughts on your teams display?
Josh McEwen “We have defended fantastically over two legs and have made two individual errors that have cost us the goals today but I say to the players be brave on the ball but don’t do stupid things Martin (Zubimendi) he got caught in midfield but where was his passing options but the second goal after Oleks (Zinchenko) mistake what he was doing I don’t know he can pass to the keeper or the centre back and he just holds the ball it is frustrating but we are happy because we qualify and we know we need to improve more.”
Leicester City (4-2-3-1): Hein, Coulibaly, Souttar, Disasi, Thomas, Soumare, Skipp (Off 86), Fatawu, Mavididi, El Khannouss, Daka (Off 45)
Subs: Martinelli, Okoli, Njinmah (On 45), Faes (On 86), Holden, Ayew, Page, Vestergaard
Q: Josh before today concerns were raised about how Viktor Gyokeres is adapting to your style do you feel he answered his critics after that performance?
Josh McEwen “Viktor is a world class striker and we are so lucky to have him here. The way he moves off the ball he creates space for other players but he is a goalscorer and our job is to do more to get that out of him but as long as the team is winning Viktor is happy and today he scored and we won last week he didn’t score but we won and again he was happy. If I wasn’t happy with him we have Gabriel (Jesus) another fantastic striker who would be playing but Viktor has been so good since I joined and when we get more time together he will get even better I’m sure of it.”
Q: Jaime another defeat for your side leaving you six points away from safety. What are your thoughts on todays game?
Jaime Bello “I thought we kept the ball well, we got off to a great start and had a massive chance for Daka but he hit it straight at Kepa if we scored that maybe the game would have been different but against a team like Arsenal in the position we’re in we have to score that chance. Second half I was a bit disappointed that we didn’t ask any questions of them but we showed we can control the ball against a top team.”
Great start as Arsenal manager. Especially the Palace win, keeping them - and former club Wolves - behind you in the race for top 4. Defensively the team has improved too, now with 5 teams having conceded more. Hate to see Man United so low though - and their two rivals on top. Where's the unfollow button? 😉
