Freddie Ljungberg warned his players not to get carried away after a spectacular comeback against West Ham boosted the Swede’s hopes of landing the Arsenal job on a permanent basis.
Ljungberg earned his first win as Arsenal’s interim coach after a nine-minute burst that will force West Ham to reconsider Manuel Pellegrini’s position as manager. Pellegrini’s side led at half-time thanks to a goal from Angelo Ogbonna but the visitors secured their first victory in 10 matches thanks to strikes from Gabriel Martinelli, Nicolas Pépé and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
“Arsenal is a big football club,” Ljungberg said. “We have to win football games. I have been able to sense the pressure they are under. It’s been tough for them. You’ve felt it and seen it in games. Today it lifted a bit and we started to play good football. The main thing is we can’t get carried away. We have a lot to work on.”
Ljungberg was installed on a temporary basis after Unai Emery was fired last month and he was relieved to gain his first victory at the third time of asking. Arsenal were low on confidence after last Thursday’s abysmal home defeat by Brighton & Hove Albion but West Ham were taken apart in the second half. “The players did amazingly,” Ljungberg said. “In the first half we were slow, we were lethargic, we didn’t run. In my opinion that comes from the players being low. It was amazing to see for me. You see West Ham getting a bit tired around the 60th minute and we sliced them open.”
Ljungberg praised Martinelli after the 18-year-old marked his first Premier League start with his first goal at this level and he was also delighted to see Pépé justify his £72m fee with a stunning goal and an assist for Aubameyang. “People always ask me about Nico,” he said. “People put pressure on him. He worked really hard, offensively and defensively. I’m pleased for him. He will fall asleep with a smile on his face.”
West Ham lie a point above the bottom three after losing seven of their last nine matches. Pellegrini admitted his side conceded easy goals and were lacking confidence.
“I am worried because in the last five games here at home we have just one draw,” West Ham’s manager said. “We must be more consistent and more solid and try to finish with more quality.”
