At 3:00 AM CEST on September 1st, Arsenal will face Aston Villa away in the second round of the Premier League. After the media embargo ended, the second part of Arsenal manager Arteta's pre-match press conference was released. This article covers that second half of the content.

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Many questions today focused on attack and the forward line, and clearly various names were mentioned, particularly one specific name that I won't repeat. In general, you clearly already have Viktor Gyökeres, who has been at the club for around a season now. In that context, how do you feel hearing the desire for another new striker from outside? What's your overall view of Viktor at this stage?

But this is the standard and level we've created at the club. You know, the expectation is always to be better and always to strive for more, and that's ambition. I think it comes from every individual, from the fans, from the supporters, and from our desire to be better. But let's acknowledge and reiterate the outstanding players we already have.

Regarding Aston Villa, they also had a remarkable season last year. Given how close they were to the top last season, are you surprised they sold so many of their best players this summer?

Well, I'm not sure. I think every club has their own strategy, and I think the way they operate and the results they've achieved are extraordinary. I think the work they've done over the past few years deserves great credit, and I'm confident they're very, very smart. There are some very smart people at that club, it's run very well, and I'm sure they know exactly what they want to do.

Unai Emery has experience rebuilding teams. Do you feel that with his capabilities as a head coach, he won't be too hindered by losing these players?

I mean, his capabilities as a head coach are beyond question by anyone. At every club he's managed, he's consistently exceeded expectations, which is an outstanding quality.

If everyone stays healthy next month, and depending on whether you can bring in new players, you might have more than 20 players—as you mentioned earlier, you'd like to have 22 outfield players. So every week on matchday, you might have to leave some players out of the squad. Do you think the players are ready for that conversation? Because sitting on the bench is one thing, but traveling to a match, checking into a hotel, and then being told you're not even in the squad is another...

Yes, this is what I've been advocating for to the Premier League all along. We must expand the squad size, purely for the welfare of the players, which is the most important thing. Because I believe that ideally every squad needs more than 20 outfield players to cope with the demanding schedule, the frequency of matches, and the international commitments we face.

But these are the rules, and we must follow them. If we don't, we'll essentially be playing tennis. In tennis, you're guaranteed to play tomorrow, but if you don't like your performance, unfortunately you still have to play the next day, you understand? So we need to approach this naturally.

Obviously, we must stay very close to the players, explain the situation to them in the right way, so everyone feels valued, because they truly are valuable. And at all the top clubs—because I've researched all the top clubs in Europe, and we're not different from anyone—most of them, 90% of clubs, have more players than we do, so we need to address this issue.

If you've raised this issue with the Premier League, is there anyone else supporting you? Is there a group of head coaches who have collectively raised this initiative to the Premier League with you? Do you think they might be willing to make a change?

Yes, but I think more than anything, this question should be asked to the players: what do they want? If they raise their hands and say "No, I'd rather stay home, I don't want to travel with the team," then I think we have a problem, because that means they don't love what they do—matchday.

But I'm confident that if you ask the players, everyone wants to be part of the matchday squad, because that's how they realize their self-worth. If not, you have to tell someone "You're not even in the squad for this match," which is really, truly difficult. It doesn't help anyone, it doesn't help the club, it doesn't help evaluate a player's value, and it doesn't make the player feel they're part of the collective. In my opinion, this is a real issue, and it has a very, very simple solution.

Hi Mikel, some of us spoke with Bukayo Saka after the Coventry match, and it was very clear how motivated he is this season. Obviously he's had a great start to the season. Have you noticed a change in him since he returned? The World Cup was clearly a frustrating period for him, but he looks very keen to put it behind him and move forward...

Yes, because as a team we had a very good season. But he knows that in many ways, he can do far better than last season. This is the kind of player we want—they're never satisfied, they want more—and Bukayo certainly looks very sharp this season.

Of course, at the PFA Awards earlier this week, people were used to seeing Bukayo appear alongside Saliba, Rice, Gabriel, Raya, etc. Of course, he wasn't there this time. You won Player of the Year last season, but how significant is this? Do you feel you can draw out more potential from Bukayo this season, even though you've already won the award last season?

Well, I think it just shows how strong our team is. It's a very proud moment to see half our team represented there. It also tells the story of last season—that even with some of our best attacking players absent for five or six months, we still managed to achieve what we did, and that should be greatly appreciated by the other players.

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