We deserved to lose as Liverpool was better, says Arsenal coach Mikel Arteta

LONDON: After suffering a 0-3 defeat against Liverpool in the Premier League, Arsenal coach Mikel Arteta complimented his opponent and said that his side completely deserved to lose the game.

Diogo Jota's brace and Mohamed Salah's lone strike helped Liverpool defeat Arsenal 3-0 here at the Emirates Stadium in the ongoing Premier League 2020-21 season on Sunday.

"We completely deserved to lose the game. They were better in every department and deserved to win the game with the margin they had, or even more. I accept responsibility for the way we played today. I do not have to use any excuses - that we do not have five or six players - the standards are much higher at this football club and I have to get them to perform at that level," Arteta told Sky Sports, as reported by Goal.com.

"It was technical as well. We gave every ball away and could not put three passes together. The basics were not there today. At the moment I am in shock. I did not expect that because of the way the team trained. It is a challenge and brings an opportunity. If you have courage and big balls and you represent a club like this, you have to stand up in the next game and take it," he added.

With this win, Liverpool has moved to the fifth place in the standings with 49 points from 30 matches, while Arsenal has slipped to the ninth position with 42 points from 30 games.

The first half of the match did not see any goals and both teams went into the half-time with the scoreline being at 0-0. However, in the second half, Liverpool managed to turn around its fortunes as both Jota and Salah came to the party to give Liverpool a win.

In the whole game, Liverpool had seven shots on target as compared to Arsenal's two. In terms of ball possession, Klopp's side dominated the game as they held on to the ball for 65 per cent of the match.

Liverpool will next take on Aston Villa on April 10 while Arsenal will clash against Sheffield United on April 11.