Adam Birchall was pleased with his under-18s side’s performance despite the narrow 1-0 loss to Ipswich Town.
Our young Gunners conceded early on in the affair, but showed fight to try and make amends throughout the 90.
“A narrow defeat in scoreline, in performance. I thought we were far superior today and generated some fantastic opportunities.
“Unfortunately, we didn’t take the chances that we created, but it was a good performance from the players. The big learning curve will be the importance of both boxes.
“Their goal was obviously from a deflection. I didn’t think we switched on quickly enough on that free kick. Overall, we’re a very young team, but I see big potential in this group.”
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U18s report: Ipswich Town 1-0 Arsenal
Despite falling behind in the first few minutes, Adam’s side dominated the stats and were unlucky not to have found a way back into the game, with plentiful chances arriving in both halves.
Adam acknowledged the inexperience of the current youthful group he coaches, but was encouraged by the growth opportunities that arise from such circumstances. “The young players will gain experience and capitalise on these dominant performances,” he said. “People who have been in youth development for a long time know you can go through spells like this for young players. Especially, we’re asking a lot of young lads to play up.
“What I’m looking for is that improvement every week. That starts on the training pitch. We’ve got to build mentality together, our culture and the environment we set amongst each other, it can only help us get better.
“Use the lessons from today to improve us and go again on Tuesday. We’ve got a game very quickly, so we’ve got to bounce back.
“I’m looking forward to it and love watching this group of players play. Hopefully, we can be competitive again and find a way to win”
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