Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has described their 3–2 loss to Villarreal in the Emirates Cup as painful, admitting his side were outplayed in key moments.
The Gunners fell behind despite taking an early lead through Nicolas Pepe, with Villarreal responding through goals from Karl Etta Eyong and Arnaut Danjuma.
Christian Norgaard and Martin Odegaard scored for Arsenal, but it wasn’t enough to avoid defeat in front of the home crowd.
Speaking after the match, Arteta said Villarreal were highly efficient while Arsenal’s defending in open spaces was poor.
He criticised his team’s naivety, noting that their failure to manage space effectively had ultimately cost them the match a key area he stressed must improve given Arsenal’s playing style.