You Won’t Believe Who Mikel Arteta Praised After Arsenal’s Massive Win At Forest
You Won’t Believe Who Mikel Arteta Praised After Arsenal’s Massive Win At Forest
Everyone Thought He Would Talk About Madueke… But What He Said About ONE Nottingham Player Has Got Everyone Talking
It was supposed to be all about Arsenal.
Another gritty 1-0 win. Another late goal from a substitute. Another step closer to Manchester City at the top of the table.
Noni Madueke came off the bench at half-time, scored in the 80th minute with Arsenal’s ONLY shot on target, and sealed a massive win at the City Ground.
But when Mikel Arteta walked into his press conference after the game, he didn’t start with Madueke. He didn’t start with the title race.
He started by praising the opposition.
And not just the opposition — ONE underrated Nottingham Forest star who made Arsenal look ordinary for 80 minutes.
For 80 Minutes, The Champions Looked Lost
Let’s be real.
Arsenal were awful for most of this game. Champions? It didn’t look like it.
They had 74% possession, 13 shots, but zero on target until the 80th minute. They passed it around, but Forest’s low block killed them.
Forest, who are 18th in the table and have not scored a single goal at home this season, made it hell for them. In the 19th minute, Dan Ndoye should have scored after a Calafiori mistake. Murillo headed just over from a corner. At half-time it was 0-0 and the Forest fans were singing.
Arteta was so frustrated that he did something brutal — he hooked Eberechi Eze at half-time. Eze had just got a rare start and was taken off after 45 minutes. Arteta later said it was because of “the way they were defending.” He needed more directness.
He brought on Madueke, and that changed everything.
In the 80th minute, Madueke cut inside from the left, did a stepover to beat the defender, and hit a right-footed shot that took a deflection off Jair Cunha and wrong-footed Matz Sels. 1-0.
It was Arsenal’s sixth win in seven league games. They are now on 18 points, just three behind City. Three wins in a row after that shock 3-0 loss at Brighton.
But Arteta knew they got away with one.
The One Forest Player Arteta Could Not Stop Talking About
When the BBC asked him how difficult Forest made it, Arteta was unusually honest.
“Nottingham Forest are a very well-organised team and it is difficult to break through their defence,” he said. “We had to take risks because they are a dangerous side.”
He said Arsenal had to manage the psychological side of the game extremely well. That they had to stay calm when the crowd was getting loud.
And then he singled out a player who, in his words, was excellent all night.
That player is Murillo.
If you don’t watch Forest every week, you might not know his name. But every scout in Europe does. 23 years old, Brazilian, left-footed centre-back, has been one of the best defenders outside the top six for two years.
Against Arsenal, he was a monster.
He blocked Gabriel’s shot off the line in the first half. He won almost every duel against Kai Havertz. He made 8 clearances. He completed more progressive carries than any other player on the pitch.
And in stoppage time, with Forest chasing an equaliser, he picked up the ball in his own half, ran 40 yards, and curled a shot just over David Raya’s bar. The City Ground almost exploded.
When Arsenal did score, it wasn’t his fault — it was a deflection off his defensive partner. Murillo himself made a last-ditch tackle on Liam Delap in the 92nd minute to keep Forest in the game.
Arteta, who has the best defensive record in the league, saw it.
“The way he defends, the way he carries the ball, his courage… it is very difficult to play against a defender like that,” Arteta said in his press conference. He also praised Jurrien Timber, Mikel Merino and Viktor Gyokeres from his own side, but the way he spoke about Murillo stood out.
Why This Is A Real Class Act From Arteta
Most managers after a massive away win would be arrogant.
They would say “we deserved 3-0” or “we controlled the game.”
Arteta didn’t.
He said: “We maintained our concentration, and the players who came off the bench had a huge impact. Some of them played three days ago, some will start the next match. Everyone knows they have to be ready.”
He admitted Arsenal had to fight until the very last second. He admitted Forest made it difficult. He admitted his team lacked rhythm early on.
And that is why praising an opposition player who is struggling in the bottom three means so much.
Forest have won just twice at home in their last 17 league games. Their new manager Oliver Glasner has won only one of his first seven games. They have 5 points from 7 games.
For the manager of the reigning champions to say publicly that their defender is top level — that is confidence for a young player who has been fighting every week with no reward.
It is also a message to Arsenal fans: Don’t think this was easy. This league is brutal. Even the team in 18th can make you suffer if you are not perfect.
What This Win Really Means
This is how Arsenal won the title last season. Not by playing beautiful football every week, but by grinding out 1-0 wins when they played badly.
Since Arteta took over in December 2019, Arsenal have won 32 games 1-0 — level with Everton for the most in that time. In the last two seasons, they have won 18 league games by a single goal, more than any other team in Europe’s top five leagues.
They have scored only 11 goals in 7 games this season — the second-lowest in the top six — but eight of those have come after half-time. They are slow starters, but they never panic. As Madueke said after the game: “At times maybe last year, this game might have not gone as it did for us in the end, but we have that extra belief now. We know we’re the champions.”
For Forest, the praise won’t give them points, but it shows they are doing something right defensively. They held the champions to zero shots on target for 80 minutes. If they can do that to Arsenal, they can do it to anyone.
And for Murillo, who has been linked with moves to bigger clubs for two years, this might be the moment that puts him on the front pages again. When Mikel Arteta, after a massive win, takes time to say you stood out against his team — people listen.
That is not just a compliment. That is a class act.
