Carabao Cup elimination poses mindset concerns for Arsenal
Arsenal's performance on Wednesday mattered more than the outcome. Arsenal's season was never defined by the Carabao Cup
Mikel Arteta challenged his team to display the mindset needed to stay on top regardless of competition before this game.
In their poorest performance of the season, they cast doubt on the competitions they care about.
"What it shows you is that in football what matters is the day," Arteta. "What happens tomorrow is more essential than what happened three days ago.
"We have to use this defeat, this pain, to prepare the best way to go to Newcastle on Saturday and win."
The initial goal was controversial as Tomás Soucek appeared to grab Aaron Ramsdale's shirt before Ben White headed Jarrod Bowen's 16th-minute corner into his own net.
Arsenal protested but they were ignored because VAR was not utilized in the Carabao Cup until the semifinals.
"VAR means no goal," Arteta stated. "I know the perspective and crowd make it hard for refs, but I won't use that as an excuse.
"We can compete for the ball better than we did in that position. That eliminates momentum, which is crucial to the game."