Mikel Arteta is aware of the challenge ahead of Arsenal's trip to Manchester City on Wednesday night, but is relishing the contest between the Premier League’s top two sides.
Arsenal travel to the Etihad Stadium with a five-point lead, but City's two matches in hand mean Arteta's team need a victory to keep the destiny of this season’s trophy in their own hands.
| Position Pos | Club | Played Pl | GD | Points Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Man City
MCI
|
38 | +61 | 89 |
| 2 |
Arsenal
ARS
|
38 | +45 | 84 |
“Yes, it’s going to be a tough night, and a challenge,” Arteta told the club's official website. “But, the opportunity is incredible for us.
"We knew from the beginning, [if] you want to win a Premier League [title], you have to go to Spurs and you have to beat them; you have to go to Chelsea and you have to beat them; you have to go away from home and you have to beat them.
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“And this is what we do. And that’s why we are here. Now we have to go to City and you have to beat them.
“If you want to be champions you have to win those matches. It is as simple as that.”
“We knew from the beginning that City was the team to beat, probably with Liverpool because of what those teams have done in the last six, seven years and they fully deserve that credit.
“And to be at the top, we were the ones that wanted to be closing that gap as much as we possibly could, and we are toe to toe with them.
“We knew that we had to go to the Etihad, and we know that after that they’re going to have another five very difficult game."
Asked if a first victory for Arsenal at the Etihad since January 2015 would guarantee them the title, Arteta was adamant.
“Is it going to define the season? The answer is no," he said. “If we win tomorrow night, we haven’t won the league, that’s for sure.
"It will shift a little bit the percentage, but five games in this league, with the games that we both have to play.”
'Defensive errors must stop'
Arteta's team have dropped points in the last three matches, drawing all three, in part down to defensive errors that also cost his side in the reverse fixture against Man City, where his side lost 3-1.
The Arsenal manager says they cannot afford to make similar mistakes on Wednesday.
“The margins, you cannot give anything away,” he said. “Against big teams they punish you straightaway.
"That game [at home to Man City], for many periods, we did really, really well and deserved much better. But again we had one or two moments that we gave them and the game was over.”
Saliba and Xhaka struggling
Arteta also gave an update on key players William Saliba and Granit Xhaka who have missed recent matches through injury and illness respectively.
“No real improvement, we are still waiting, still hopeful, but another week gone by and he was not able to train with the team,” he says on Saliba.
“I'll leave that to the doctors. We are preparing for this game without him, we have to go week by week."
“Xhaka is hopefully able to train today, still a doubt. The rest are OK.”