Arsenal’s Arteta says Raya not at fault in close call

Mikel Arteta refused to play the blame game after goalkeeper David Raya's errors nearly cost Arsenal dearly in a thrilling 4-3 win at Luton Town in the Premier League on Tuesday.

The Spaniard, who replaced Aaron Ramsdale between the posts after joining on loan from Brentford, was guilty as Luton scored twice in eight minutes to take the lead.

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He was caught behind by a corner in the 49th minute that allowed Elijah Adebayo to make it 2-2, then allowed a Ross Barkley shot to slide under him to give the hosts the lead.

Luckily for him, Kai Havertz equalized and then Declan Rice scored the winner in the seventh minute of injury time to put Arsenal five points ahead.

“We need to defend situations better as a team. There are certain things that lead to goals and it's not about blame, we've never done that and we're not going to do that now,” Arteta said to journalists interviewed about Raya's exhibition.

“It’s about how the team responds to that, because it’s going to happen, and I love that response.”

Arteta, who backed Raya on Monday amid speculation around a January departure from Ramsdale, was far more willing to speak about the spirit of his team, who refused to accept dropping points at Kenilworth Road – a ground on which Arsenal had not won since 1984.

We don't want a draw, we want to win! This motivation, this energy, this risk and this emotion that we put on the pitch, you can feel it,” Arteta said.

“Today we conceded a few goals that are going to disappoint us, but that's also part of it. It's going to happen and how we react to that, and it was great.”

The only blemish on a great evening for Arsenal was the news that Takehiro Tomiyasu, unable to play, faces dismissal.

“We've had a scan, and it's not good news. He's got a calf injury and he's going to be out for a while,” Arteta said.

Information from Reuters and the Associated Press was used in this story.