'I repeated 1000 times': Mikel Arteta reacts after seeing what Arsenal fans did at the Emirates last night

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Arsenal were beaten 2-0 by Newcastle United in the first leg of the semi-final of the EFL Cup.

Mikel Arteta named a strong starting lineup against the Magpies. Most of the big players the Spaniard had at his disposal started on Tuesday night.

Alexander Isak opened the scoring for Newcastle in the first half before Anthony Gordon doubled their lead just six minutes after the break.

That was enough for the Toon to take a big advantage back to St James’ Park, and Arsenal fans at the Emirates Stadium were far from happy with the result.

Mikel Arteta reacts after seeing Arsenal fans leave early during Newcastle clash

One of Arteta’s biggest achievements since becoming Arsenal’s manager was the way he changed the atmosphere at the Emirates.

The Gunners’ home ground wasn’t great for many years. The players weren’t getting enough support and there was more criticism than love for their own side.

Arteta slowly changed that and turned the Emirates into one of the best grounds in the country over the last two years.

However, things haven’t quite been the same in recent months, and that was evident again in the game against Newcastle United.

Several home fans decided to leave the Emirates early after seeing the Gunners go 2-0 down. Arteta wasn’t a big fan of that.

When asked about fans leaving well before the full-time, Arteta said, as per Arsenal.com: “That’s their decision. We try our best and it’s their decision to stay right behind the team or leave.

“I think I repeated 1000 times how important they are and how critical it is to maintain the level of energy and belief in the stadium to generate big moments at the end that we could have had and because we were very close to scoring [and make it] 2-1 and we would have needed that.

“But, that wasn’t the case and that’s not good.”

Arsenal fans have a big role to play

Arsenal were absolutely incredible in each of the last two seasons, even though they didn’t win the title.

The atmosphere at the Emirates in almost every game was truly electric. Even when Arsenal conceded, they would get cheered on and that helped them get back into games.

Seeing the fans leave early when the players were doing everything to score must have been difficult for those on the pitch. That is why Arteta was not a happy man after the game.

As difficult as it is at the moment, Arsenal fans have to stand behind their team. Everyone saw how well the Gunners performed when the Emirates was rocking – they need that again.

If the home atmosphere becomes toxic, all the good work Arteta has done in recent years will be worth nothing.