MIKEL ARTETA was ‘naive’ to think his Arsenal defence could manhandle Chelsea hitman Romelu Lukaku, Jamie Carragher said.
The Belgium international had a field day and scored in the Blues’ 2-0 win over the Gunners on Sunday.
The £97.5million man ran the Arsenal defence ragged from the first whistle and embarrassed centre-back Pablo Mari on a number of occasions.
And former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher believes Arteta was incredibly optimistic with his plan to nullify the Belgian, saying: “There was a plan.
“But as I said, to think Arsenal’s back four or back three could almost go man-for-man against Chelsea, as I said before, was very naive.”
Lukaku, 28, was thrilled with his performance at the Emirates, telling the BBC: “Dominant, I would say.
“I try to improve every time. I have a long way to go but today was good to win.
“I worked hard throughout the week. We knew it was a big game and we did well.
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“As an individual, I want to help the team and I want to continue doing that.”
Blues boss Thomas Tuchel said of the summer signing’s display: “What a start for Lukaku.
“In the beginning, he struggled to touch the ball a little bit. Then he was very well integrated.
“He proved his value for the squad already. He linked really well with Mason Mount and Kai Havertz up front and gave something to the game that we did not have already.”
To think Arsenal’s back four or back three could almost go man-for-man against Chelsea, as I said before, was very naïve.
Jamie Carragher
The pressure is already on Arteta following back-to-back defeats in his side’s opening Premier League fixtures.
But the Spaniard insists his troops won’t give up on their objectives for the season.
He said: “I don’t think the club in their history have faced something like this.
“We have to face the challenge. The league or table is not decided in August.
“The worst thing you can do is throw in the towel. We certainly are not going to do that.”
Arsenal will be back in action on Wednesday night, travelling to the Hawthorns to take on West Brom in the second round of the Carabao Cup.
The north Londoners will return to Premier League action on Saturday afternoon when they lock horns with defending champions Manchester City at the Etihad.
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Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
