'I love him!' - Mikel Arteta backs Jorginho despite his decisive error in 2-2 draw with Spurs

• Jorginho's error led to the second Spurs goal
• Arsenal held to a 2-2 draw
• Arteta backed the midfielder despite mistake

WHAT HAPPENED? The Italian midfielder was introduced in the second half to replace an injured Declan Rice who had to be taken off due to discomfort in his back. However, the midfielder was caught wrong-footed on the ball which allowed James Maddison to steal it away from him and set Son Heung-Min through on goal. The South Korean was clinical in front of goal and calmly slotted it past David Raya between the sticks to help the Lilywhites equalise.

However, Arteta did not want to be too harsh on the midfielder and instead kept Jorginho's back when asked about the error that led to the goal.

WHAT THEY SAID: "What happened is I love him and we love him. Errors are part of football," he told reporters.

"They’re allowed to make errors because they play and we don’t play. For us it’s really easy, but if there is someone who is willing to help the team and do the most of it, it’s Jorgi. We are all with him."

THE BIGGER PICTURE: Arsenal might have to depend on Jorginho in the next few matches if Rice remains unavailable after picking up a knock on Sunday. Thomas Partey also remains injured which further complicates the problem and Arteta might have to reshape his midfield with the Italian as the centre-piece flanked by Martin Odegaard and Emile Smith Rowe.

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WHAT NEXT? Arsenal will look to return to winning ways when they travel to Brentford for an EFL Cup third-round clash on Wednesday evening before making a trip to the Vitality Stadium to face Bournemouth in the Premier League on September 30.