Arteta says fire for title fight still there as Arsenal look ahead to Chelsea match
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has insisted that his side can still win the Premier League title despite falling behind Manchester City in the table.
The Gunners will tonight face a Chelsea side still without a win after five games under interim head coach Frank Lampard as they look to stay on the toes of Pep Guardiola’s City.
Having lost 4-1 at the Etihad last week, and with City’s 2-1 win over Fulham at the weekend, Arteta’s side are now chasing their Manchester rivals.
Arsenal can still win
“We can still achieve the Premier League because there are five games to go and a lot of things are going to happen still,” Arteta said.
“When I look at it, this is not over.
“It is not in our hands any more. What is in our hands is to try and win the games we have left and the rest is down to City.
“I have not had to pick up the mood of the players. They keep the fire in the belly.”
A win tonight against a struggling Chelsea outfit at Emirates Stadium would take Arsenal back to the summit of the Premier League table, albeit they’d be ahead by just two points having played two more games.
But in what is usually a hotly contested London derby, Chelsea are huge underdogs given their record since sacking Graham Potter.
Under interim coach Lampard the side are without a win in five matches.
A 2-0 loss to Brentford last week followed Premier League losses to Brighton and Wolves for Lampard as he looks to resurrect a club he once starred for.
But the former Blues midfielder has said tonight’s opponents are still able to win the title.
“It could be either way,” the caretaker boss said. “Very much in the hunt still to win the league.
“If they’re wounded they could have a big reaction, if we can make things difficult, it could be different.
They’re in it
“They’re [Arsenal] fully in it. Manchester City are in incredible form but they’re in it.
“They’re [Chelsea] low on confidence and low on performance.
“I’ve been here in periods where confidence is low. In history we managed to get it back through hard work, level of the squad, we changed managers a lot.
“You shouldn’t be talking about team confidence but it’s clearly an issue at the minute.”
Chelsea have lost four of their last five Premier League games against Arsenal, conceding nine goals and scoring five across those matches.
A win for Chelsea will take them above Crystal Palace and into 11th as the Blues chase a top half finish.