Press conference: Fabian Hurzeler pre-Arsenal

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Albion's head coach covered a variety of topics ahead of tonight's Carabao Cup tie.

2025-10-29T11:40+00:00

📷Paul Hazlewood.

Can I ask if there's any new injury concerns from the weekend?

I think it's just James Milner. He suffered a small muscle issue, so he won't be available tomorrow. Mitoma, Veltman, Hinshelwood and Gruda are getting closer but I don't think that they have a chance to be in the squad tomorrow.

Arsenal have started the season very strongly. Tell me a little bit about them from your perspective, and would you have them down as the title favourites?

The table tells the truth so they're doing well. Out of possession and with set pieces they are very good so I think these are two main factors in what makes them successful. They are very disciplined. I think everyone attacks the box. Everyone defends the box. It will be a big challenge for us in terms of dealing with those set pieces.

We don’t know if Gabriel is going to play tomorrow, but he seems to be someone who's been strong from set pieces. How do you go about defending someone who's so powerful?

I think you can't defend them one against one. That's the first thing. The second thing I think is that it's not only Gabriel, but also the movement they do together. They block very well for each other. They have really good patterns. The other side is also that we are quite good at defending when we look at our defensive statistics. We are also trying to build a defensive culture but this needs time, it doesn't come overnight. But we are quite confident that we are able to defend set pieces against them.

You mentioned the set piece culture. It is something that's been talked about a lot, especially over the weekend. I think 19% of goals in the Premier League have come from corners and 35% from set pieces. Is that a trend that surprises you?

This season it doesn't surprise me. I think it's just the natural progress that it's getting more and more important. You have to adapt but t's also important to find your identity as a team.

Would you ever look at a player who specifically has a good long throw?

If you don't have a set piece team you won't make a set piece team out of it. If you are more a team who tries to control the ball, who tries to have their style of play by having possession, with trying to find solutions against the high press and against the low block then I think you have to stick to it.

Long-term you must be convinced of your identity. I think when you jump on a train and say it's very effective for us to long throws, and we try to do the long throws, then you're not convinced of it. And if you don't believe in then I'm sure that long-term it won't be successful. It’s about making the small adjustments and adapting to different situations. Do you develop young players to only play long throws corners and free kicks? I'm not sure. You develop them to make them better. Can they find solutions in narrow spaces, in the low block for example? If you work with them in one-to-one training sessions, then you make them better.

How close are you to having a full squad available?

There are three or four players with small issues and I hope that they will come back as soon as possible because at the moment it seems to be that we have quite a small squad. I think we have missed all the players who are injured.

How difficult is it to get the [team selection] balance right against a side like Arsenal, maybe compared to Oxford and Barnsley, in terms of playing youngsters?

It’s not about age, it's about quality. So that's what we try to focus on, but for sure you always need a good balance in the team, especially against a team like Arsenal.

We see the young players adapting quite well in training. We can't expect magical things from them all the time, we give them the environment where they can improve and that's the main thing. And we also have to give them the belief and the trust that they can do it against big teams.

You've done it against big teams this season like Manchester City, Chelsea and the like. How do you go about trying to unpick this Arsenal team?

Believe in our quality, believe in our style of play. Do the basic things right, play with courage, defend well as a team.

The club has not been to the League Cup quarter-finals for 45 years. Is that a motivation that you can use with the players in terms of breaking new ground?

Cup competitions are always a big motivation because it gives you a chance to win a title. Arsenal is the favourite for tomorrow, but the cup games are always 50-50. You always have a chance. We had two draws against them last season so of course that gives you confidence, but it doesn't mean you get to the next round. They are the best team in the league, but we have to believe that we are capable of beating them. If it goes to a penalty shoot-out we are ready. We practice penalties not just today but every day.

Albion's former midfielder Leandro Trossard could be in the Arsenal line-up on Wednesday. 📷Bennett Dean.

What do you make of the form of [former Albion player] Leandro Trossard?

I can only judge him as a player, not as a person. He’s very good in both phases, so attacking and also how he defends his own box. And offensively, of course, he has the quality to beat every player one against one.

Mikel Arteta played in the Premier League with Everton and Arsenal for many of years. Did that give him more of an advantage going into his current job?

There are always advantages and disadvantages. You have big experiences, and you understand what it needs to play in the Premier League. I have built this experience over the last one and a half years, especially with the help of my senior players, but I get it from my assistant coaches, from my staff, I get it from my sporting director. They all know how to play in the Premier League. I'm quite a good listener and then I try to adapt step by step.