Evertona s Roberto Martinez doesna t think Arsenal will be short of their best despite their loss to Monaco in the midweek Champions League game.
Martinez said, a I don’t think Arsenal will suffer from a psychological setback after what happened in their last game. They have incredible experience in these sorts of games.a
Martinez also said that Arsenal having an extra daya s rest would also help them, after Evertona s excursions on Thursday night.
a It is true that an extra 24 hours in terms of recovery makes a big difference,a the Spaniard said. a We need to make sure we are fully fit and refreshed. We expect an Arsenal fully focused on trying to carry on the outstanding form they have in the league, and we’ll have to be at our very best.a
a Arsenal have only had one home league defeat and we know we have a real difficult task in front of us. But at the same time, after our result last weekend, we are desperate to perform well and get a good result.a
Roberto Martinez also talked about the contrasting fortunes in their domestic and European campaigns, with Everton only at 12th place in the league table with no possible hope of finishing in the top 4 whereas they comfortably sailed through to Round of 16 in the Europa League.
Martinez said: a We have gone into league matches feeling too much responsibility, like we have something to lose rather than something to gain, and I think in the Europa League it has been completely different – from a mental point of view, it has just been an opportunity to beat the opposition and show what we can do.a
a That is exactly the manner we should be approaching the games with in the league and hopefully, now we are going into the final 12 matches and we know we are not going to be in a position to get into the top four, we will be in a position to get as many points as we can, finish as high as we can and find a real enjoyment in domestic competition too.a
Martinez was also impressed with England Under-21 defender Luke Garbutt who provided an assist on Thursday, and said he was a possible future England international.
Martinez said, a I think he has the potential to become a full international for England.
‘He is still very much in a development phase, but when you see him performing in the manner he did on Thursday, with certain assurance and a real composed manner, it shows you he has no fear of competing with anyone for his position, which is what we need in our squad.a