Mikel Arteta, manager of Arsenal, lauded his team after they swept RC Lens aside 6-0 on a chilly night in north London on Wednesday.
The Gunners’ 6-0 victory over the French was the largest ever by an English team against a French opponent in European competition.
“I didn’t even dream like this,” Arteta explained to reporters. “We had the opportunity today to qualify and finish first in our group, and I believe we did so convincingly.”
“From the start, the team displayed a lot of aggression and determination to win the game.” Everything went swimmingly in the first 30 minutes.”
Arteta stated that his team had been exhibiting similar form at home for some time, and he was pleased that six different players had their names on the score sheet.
“The consistency that we’ve shown at home to not concede any goals and score lots is a really positive factor,” he went on to say.
“Those players need to have those experiences and believe that we can do it against those opponents.”
However, he was careful to downplay his intentions in Europe’s premier club championship.
“Let us now wait. We’ll know who we’re up against (in the next round) in February, and we’ll see how we’re doing then.”
The manager was particularly pleased to see that his players stayed focused until the final whistle, despite the fact that the game had been virtually settled within the first half-hour.
“When the team has that body language, when we live every move and every game the way we do, good things will happen… The team wants to win and does not want to concede anything, and that is the mentality we need to improve.”