Sokratis says Arsenal have the opportunity to get their season back on track when Manchester City visit the Emirates on Sunday afternoon.
The Greek has urged the Gunners to build a quality performance on the foundations of ‘dirty work’ and reckons they could ‘explode’ as a result; presumably in a good way rather than the manner in which Arsenal usually self-destruct.
Anyway, thanks to a win against West Ham on Monday and yesterday’s comeback at Liege there’s a teensy bit of optimism around the camp.
“Of course, it is a very difficult game,” Sokratis said. “Sometimes, these are games where you can explode. We need one good game in our home to explode.
“You have to have quality but to show the quality you have to first show intensity, win the duels, be organized.
“The team has quality, but to show the quality you have to do the dirty work. If you do the dirty work and you’re organized, you can win. But first of all, you have to work on intensity, pace, and organization.”
Arsenal certainly can’t afford to drop more points at the weekend. They will face Manchester City without first-choice fullbacks Hector Bellerin and Kieran Tierney who were injured in the win over Westham while Nichola Pepe remains a doubt with a knee sprain.
However, the Gunners have an impressive home record having lost just once in the league at the Emirates this season.