Mikel Arteta spoke to TNT Sport after Arsenal’s 1-0 defeat to Newcastle this afternoon.

Here’s what he had to say.

Thoughts about what was wrong…

Well, I thought we started very well. We were very dominant until their best moment. Direct play, second ball. We didn’t defend the box well enough.

Credit them too. They put an incredible delivery and header in the box. And from there the game changes. You know, when you face this team, as soon as they move on, you’re going to play a different game. You have to adapt to that.

We haven’t done well enough. We have not found enough answers to many of the questions and situations that you need to solve better. So I’m very frustrated.

Did Arsenal show their teeth today?

It also had more to do with certain situations. Obviously we couldn’t handle it well enough and got sucked into a game they were constantly looking for. We didn’t have enough consistency to come out of that game and play the game we wanted.

We also had moments where we created two or three big chances, because they didn’t really create much. But that was the difference in the match.

Why didn’t Arsenal create more chances like Rice’s header at the death?

We had two big chances. Mikel got another big chance. Gabriel Martinelli had another big one. But yeah, in these games, especially when you’re away and then they defend so deep, we missed those opportunities.

How do you prevent heads from falling when Inter and Chelsea are coming?

Well, it’s time to do it on the field. We can say whatever we want. We probably won’t find the right words today, because after losing a match you are hurt.

But we have to show it on the field on Wednesday evening.

The margins are tight in the battle for the title…

Yes, that’s always the case in this league. And you understand the position you play in and the level rises. You have to be at our best in every department to give yourself a chance to win, especially playing away from home against these types of opponents again.