‘We really want this’: Mikel Arteta on clinching EFL Cup

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta expressed full confidence in his highflying teamrsquos ability to beat Manchester City and clinch the EFL Cup when the two sides face off in Sundayrsquos summit clashlsquoPrepared and confidentrsquoldquoWe are really prepared and confident that wersquore going to make it happen win the EFL Cup It can be one of the defining moments of our season In order to be in the final you have to do a lot of things right as the team has done so far Now we need to prove that point once again on the pitchrdquo said ArtetaThe Gunners are in the hunt for a historic quadruple mdash no English Premier League side has won the league title both domestic cups and the Champions League in the same season before mdash and Arteta believes a positive result at the iconic Wembley stadium will provide a huge boost to his charges who havenrsquot clinched silverware since the FA Cup trophy in 2020ldquoWhen you have been in this position and gone years without winning a trophy obviously it adds more necessity but also more drive because you really want it And thatrsquos something that we have Obviously you can imagine how nice it would be on Sunday when you win it It would be a massive energy boost and belief for everybody that we can win more trophies this year and thatrsquos why we want it so much said the Spaniard Recent history suggests that Arsenal have the edge in this clash They are unbeaten against Pep Guardiolarsquos side in their last six encountersCityrsquos EFL Cup dominanceHowever the Sky Blues have dominated the EFL Cup over the last few years six cup wins since 2014 Furthermore Guardiolarsquos side are also chasing Arsenal for the league title and trail them by nine points with a game in hand A win for Guardiolarsquos unit on Sunday could be a psychological blow for the Gunners who in previous years have crumbled in the league during the business end of the seasonIt will be a big challenge for us City boss GuardiolaManchester City boss Pep Guardiola expects a gruelling fight against a powerful Arsenal side in the EFL Cup final on Sunday claiming it will be a test for the Sky Blues to see where they standldquoThey Arsenal are an exceptional team They control defend deep high buildups long ball second balls many good things They are also very fluid So it is a big challenge for us to see our levelrdquo said Guardiola He also confirmed that James Trafford who has been starting in the EFL Cup will retain his place at the expense of Gianluigi Donnarumma33No of years since Arsenal last won the EFL Cup they beat Sheffield Wednesday 21 in the final in 1993FourNo of times Arsenal have defeated Manchester City at Wembley Stadium in their last five meetingsSixArsenalrsquos current unbeaten streak against Man City across all competitions two wins four drawsEightNo of different goalscorers that Arsenal have had in five EFL Cup games this seasonThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever