Ramsdale has signed his contract can we expect Saka and Odegaard to follow suit?
Delighted with the news for Aaron. He full deserves that new contract, that extension and we want to keep our talent at the club and we want to build on that. There are a few more who are very relevant for us to continue with that relationship. We're working on that.
What’s the latest on Zinchenko and Martinelli?
They’re both out for the rest of the season.
How long will their recovery be?
Different. Gabi is a pretty nasty injury, we need to assess in the next week how long he’ll be out for, but it will be at least weeks. With Alex it’s a calf issue and he won’t be available to play the next two games.
READ MORE: Mikel Arteta issues worrying update on Gabriel Martinelli and Alex Zinchenko injuries
What’s the reaction been to Brighton?
Obviously a very difficult one to swallow. Especially the way it happened in the last 25 minutes and having a very competitive first half where we should have taken much more advantage of the situations we had in the game. It was tough. In the end we discussed in the following days where we are, what we’ve done, what the possibilities are, what’s in our hands and what we can deliver. We want to continue where we have been for the last 10 months.
What do you make of the job Steve Cooper has done?
Brilliant. They made so many changes and I’m sure he found it difficult with the amount of signings that they had, but the club stood patient. With what they did the year before, everything he’s done before and keeping the unity around the place. Big credit to him and the team.
What does it mean to be nominated as one of the managers of the season?
It’s great. A huge privilege. Obviously there are lots of top managers in this division and to be part of that is always really nice.
Have you been trying to tell the players about how there have been more positives than negatives this season?
Just trying to paint the picture. We can look at the picture, really narrowly and with a thin vision or we can look with perspective at where we are today and what we’ve done. But we cannot lose sight of what happens in certain moments where probably weren’t at our best or at the level required to be champions or be in a better position than we are today. We have to acknowledge that. But the team and players deserve huge credit for how far we’ve come in the season. Don’t forget that there’s still two very important games to play though.
Do you think you’re going to be title contenders every season now?
We have shown this season. We’re still there, with two games to go we can still be champions against probably the best team in Premier League history. For 10 months we’re still there. There’s two games still to go and we’re not going to bottle that for sure. What happens next season will depend on what we do how, we evolve and how we start. That prediction is very difficult to do today.
Man City need to win the treble to prove they’re the best in history?
I said arguably. Where they are competing in the other competitions and what they done in the Champions League semi-finals. Again, it shows the capacity of this league. That team has the capacity to win 105 or 110 points. They haven’t done that this season because of the level of the league and we’ve been there with them toe to toe for 10 months.
Do you want to see the squad grow together now?
We have built that core and foundation. It’s a lot of quality, youth and enthusiasm surrounded by a lot of good people with the right experience and leadership around them. We have to continue to do that because the demands, expectations and challenges next season will be even higher. We cannot get confused of what we are today but have a lot of clarity of how we’re going to get what we want in the next seasons.
Use pain from this season for next?
I don’t know what pain, it depends what the pain is. There are a lot of moments to be extremely pleased with what we’ve done. Let’s see where we finish in the next two games. Pain is part of football. When you don’t win or you don’t perform at your level, it has to hurt and it has to hurt the right way and you have to use that pain to become better, and to finance and find solutions to things that can make you win more. This is what we are trying to do every single day.
Recruitment been good, but how much harder now shopping for team trying to win title?
When you get closer to the top then the margins are smaller. What makes you win or lose, it’s minimal and it changes. It’s a penalty that goes in or out and then the season changes in that moment. Having three, four injures or having the full squad in that moment, defines the season. So, what we have ahead of us next summer is extremely important and we have to absolutely nail it.
Xhaka, important to have clarity over him before final game? Gets a send-off?
The clarity is there. He is a player that has played I think every minute since I have been the manager. He is an incredibly respected figure at the club. He has a great story around him with what he has achieved at the club in going through very tough moments and he is a key and very important part of us. Whatever happens is something we will discuss, certainly not now.
Does your squad have the depth to compete both in the Champions League and the Premier League next season as it stands?
No. At the level that we want no. We didn’t have the capacity to do that as well with the Europa League so it’s part of that evolution. We have made a lot of good steps and strong steps in that journey and we have to continue. That never ends. We want to be better and the rest will be better, then the margins will be higher and we have to start to live with those standards and improve and be smarter.
That doesn’t mean only signing players. It’s to improve our own players. There are players that we haven’t had the best out of them this season. There are a few players where they haven’t had the minutes or the performances and we have to seek as well for those players to give us a different edge. It’s not only about signing players. It’s about resources and staff and improving certain things that can be done better or more efficiently or smarter.
Are you willing to risk Saliba’s contract going into the final 12 months?
We are trying. We are having conversations and we are trying to maintain the talent we have at the club as I said before. But things take time. You have to agree it. There are different parties involved. I think everybody’s intention is the same and hopefully we’ll find the right solution.
How do you go about improving the levels without losing the foundations of this season?
It’s continuing to do 80 per cent of the things we do really well and just trying to win margins, finding improvements and ways to be better in other areas. Whether it’s improving players, processes or recruitment. We have certain margins that are very important for us to get to another level.
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