Mikel Arteta has urged his Arsenal players to “love” the noise and pressure of being involved in Premier League and Champions League finales, saying his team can get “very close” to winning a first top-flight title in 22 years by beating Fulham, live on Sky Sports.
A win on Saturday could see the Gunners go six points clear of second-placed Manchester City, although Pep Guardiola’s side have two games in hand, beginning with Everton on Monday. Arsenal led by nine points earlier in the season, but a dip in form in April has reduced the margin to what is effectively a neck-and-neck contest.
With many saying Arsenal are “bottling” another title after three straight second-placed finishes, Arteta told Sky Sports how he wants his players to react in these crucial weeks: “I tell them: love it. If you want to win the Premier League and want to win the Champions League, what’s going to happen? You’re going to lose a match and they’re going to destroy you. That’s it.”
“You want to be there? Love to be there. When you win, love it. When you lose or you don’t play your best – and there’s going to be games where you lose the ball – love it. You will become better. There’s no other way. If you want to be at the very top, people are waiting there. It’s normal. It’s natural. And there’s only going to be one winner. The rest? Are they not good enough? Come on, if somebody believes that then there’s something wrong.”
Asked how he handles the stress of a title race, Arteta said he only pays attention to criticism from people who genuinely want the best for the team. “I’m really curious. When somebody wants the best for me and has an opinion, I open myself up and be ruthless. No pain and I gain a lot of things. But I really need to feel that the person wants the best for us, the team and the club. If that’s genuine, that’s great. But if it’s somebody who’s there to damage you, with no purpose, then I don’t think they’re worth your time.”
Arteta has placed particular emphasis on Saturday’s trip to Fulham, believing victory would leave Arsenal “very, very close” to the trophy. The title race remains extremely tight and could come down to goal difference if both Arsenal and City win their remaining matches.
“Against Newcastle there were five games to go – and that was game one,” Arteta said. “Now it’s game two – and if you win that one, you really start to get very, very close to it. That’s what is driving us. It’s our own race. It’s a race of five races. First one is done, now it’s time for the second one. You just visualise the moment and you know what it means: you win another one and you’re right in it.”
Watch Arsenal vs Fulham live on Sky Sports’ Saturday Night Football this weekend from 5pm, kick-off 5.30pm.