Mikel Arteta: Days away from football helped Arsenal to refocus

Mikel Arteta believes that the time spent away from Arsenal during the international break allowed him and his team-mates to regroup and refocus ahead of the Premier League run-in.

The Arsenal players not away with their national teams were given a few days off by Arsene Wenger ahead of Saturday’s 4-1 win over Reading.

And the Spanish midfielder, who scored from the penalty spot on Saturday, believes that the Gunners reaped the rewards of the break when they returned to action against the Royals.

“We had three days free to get some time with the family and relax our minds from football,” Arteta told Arsenal Player. “I think sometimes that’s very good.

“[After the break] we trained really hard in the last week and this week as well. And I think we played very well [against Reading].

“We had a really high tempo right from the start. I think we had a lot of good combinations around the box. We looked lively. In the first half, we could have killed the game. After the third goal, I think the game was over.”

Arsenal travel to West Bromwich Albion in the Premier League next Saturday.