Mikel Arteta wasn’t pleased with two aspects of Arsenal’s display despite triumph over Wolves

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Arsenal started the 2024/25 Premier League season with a win against Wolves at the Emirates Stadium.

Bukayo Saka and Kai Havertz secured a convincing 2-0 victory for Arsenal in their opening-day battle against Wolves. 

The duo combined twice to create each other’s goals and fire the Gunners to the win as Mikel Arteta watched his side pick up where they left off last term. 

While the Spaniard has plenty of positives to take from Arsenal’s win, the perfection that Arteta is aiming for was not met against Gary O’Neil’s squad.

• READ MORE: Five things we learned as Arsenal beat Wolves 2-0 in Premier League opener

Mikel Arteta was not happy despite Arsenal’s win over Wolves

The game belonged to Arsenal, who ensured three points were gained from match day one but it was not all rosy for the North Londoners.

Before Saka netted the hosts’ second of the afternoon, there was some anxiety in the air at the Emirates, as Wolves put the pressure on.

Speaking in his post-match press conference, Arteta admitted that two aspects of the performance require attention.

• READ MORE: Arsenal player ratings vs Wolves: 9/10 hero steals the show but 5/10 attacker fails to impress

“The lack of control in the second half [we can improve], we gave so many simple balls away,” Arteta explained.

“We also had to finish situations better but overall very happy.”

The manager’s concerns will be shared by many who watched on at the Emirates, as a flurry of loose balls and a brief lapse in concentration could have caused an opposing outcome. 

Arteta is aiming for perfection

It’s clear why Arteta raised his dissatisfaction at the holes in Arsenal’s performance, given how high the stakes are this year in the Premier League.

After recording back-to-back second-place finishes in the league table, the Gunners understand now more than ever just what it takes to dethrone Manchester City. 

• READ MORE: William Saliba breaks all-time Arsenal club record after Wolves win, it’s an unbelievable feat

Perfection is what is required and perfection is what Arteta is aiming for, with an improvement on the opening day win certainly needed.

Only two points separated Arsenal and City last term, with there no room for error as the Gunners hope to end their extensive wait to bring the Premier League title back to Islington.

Fortunately, there are 37 games to play to make the necessary tweaks, with Arteta’s concerns merely small bumps in the road during Arsenal’s journey to claim three points on the opening day.