---
title: "Arteta – We were forced to to take risks"
canonical: "https://readarsenal.com/2015/09/17/arteta-forced-take-risks/"
type: "post"
language: "en-GB"
author: "James McAndrew"
section: "Uncategorized"
published: "2015-09-17T12:28:53Z"
modified: "2015-09-17T12:34:23Z"
---

# Arteta – We were forced to to take risks

Arsenal were made to take risks following Oliver Giroud’s first-half sending off, says midfielder Mikel Arteta.

His comments come after Arsenal’s UEFA Champions League campaign got off to a disappointing start, losing 2-1 to Dinamo Zagreb on Wednesday night.

[Speaking to the media post-match](https://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/20150916/arteta-on-the-dinamo-zagreb-defeat), Arteta explained that it was an uphill battle for the Gunners following the red card.

> *We were 1-0 down and we had 10 men.*
>
> *We had to take risks by playing with three at the back, and we knew that we needed to score goals while still remaining strong at the back.*

Giroud was sent off in the 40th minute with the Gunners already losing 1-0. The Croatian side doubled their lead in the 58th minute as Junior Fernandes headed home from a corner. Theo Walcott pulled a goal back for Arsenal, but Dinamo Zagreb held on for all three points and extend their unbeaten run to 42 games.

![<> on September 16, 2015 in Zagreb, Croatia.](https://cdn.readeverything.co/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/GettyImages-488631770-904x603.jpg)

Arsene Wenger made six changes to the side that faced Stoke, but Arteta believes that the team should have performed better.

> *The manager said that he was going to make a few changes and I think that we were still good enough to compete with a Dinamo Zagreb side.*

Arsenal will face Olympiacos in their next Champions League tie in Group F on September 29th, before facing Bayern Munich on October 20th. Group rivals Bayern got their campaign off to a perfect start, beating Olympiacos 3-0.