"I felt a pain in my tummy" - Mikel Arteta admits he was left frustrated as Arsenal lose clean sheet record in Sunderland draw

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has admitted he is frustrated after the clean sheet run came to an end against Sunderland at the Stadium of Light. He wanted to leave the stadium with all three points, but had to settle for a point after Brian Brobbey scored an injury-time equaliser.

Speaking to the media after the game, Arteta credited Sunderland for the fight but said his players should have defended better in the two situations that led to the goals. He said (via GOAL):

"Again, unsatisfied because I want to win. And the game was almost there, but you know this is the Premier League and the manner that they play, they're going to hang in there when it's just one goal difference there." "I'm upset and frustrated because it's an action that we can defend better, but as well you have to give credit to the opposition to do what they've done, to put the ball there, to head the ball the way they've done it, and then they strike it to do that action and to put the ball in the net and sometimes you have to do that and recognise that as well."

Talking about the run of eight successive clean sheets coming to an end, Aretra added:

"I felt a pain in my tummy. I don't want to concede any goals. It was a goal and put the game in a difficult position."

Arsenal remain on top of the Premier League table, six points clear of Chelsea. The lead could be cut to four if Manchester City beat Liverpool, or five if the Reds beat the Cityzens.

Mikel Arteta heaps praise on Sunderland after Arsenal draw

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta said that there were no easy games in the Premier League, hailing Sunderland for their performance in the draw. He claimed that the Black Cats have shown why the league is competitive and said (via GOAL):

"That's the Premier League, you don't get to any place in the Premier League where you think you're going to have a comfortable afternoon, evening, how you want to call it. And again, it's not a coincidence what they are doing, and they decide to be where they are, and we do as well."

Arsenal players split for the international break and will be back next week, days before they take on Tottenham in the league. They face Bayern Munich in the UEFA Champions League and Chelsea in the Premier League later in November.

Edited by Sripad