Mikel Arteta sends Liverpool title warning as £45million star nears return from injury
Mikel Arteta finds himself in a familiar position at this point of the season as he delivers a title warning for Liverpool ahead of a big weekend of Premier League football.
With the Champions League draw throwing up some interesting narratives for all three English clubs, the focus now turns back to the domestic action.
Arsenal welcome West Ham United, hoping to keep the pressure on Liverpool by moving within five points with a game in hand on Saturday before Arne Slot’s side face Manchester City on Sunday.
In his pre-match press conference, Arteta was quizzed over the title race but he played it coy, keeping all the attention on the game at the Emirates Stadium tomorrow.
“I see an opportunity for us to keep winning and keep on our journey to the goal that we want at the end of the season, which is to win [the title]” he said in his pre-match press conference. “That’s the only thing we can focus on.
“We have to do our job. It’s going to be a tough one tomorrow. If we do that we will be looking at that game on Sunday [between Liverpool and Manchester City].
“There is 13 games to go, there is a lot to play. We need to be there. We are very experienced in the Premier league and know how difficult every opponent is.”
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Arteta teases return for Martinelli, Saka
One major question is the return dates for two of their key attackers, with Gabriel Martinelli and Bukayo Saka hoping to return before April.
When asked about them, he claimed that Martinelli is ahead of Saka as of this week: “They are progressing really well. Gabby is a bit ahead of Bukayo but we will have to see how the boys are feeling and what we are prepared to do.”
Martinelli had seven goals and four assists in all competitions before his injury and his return in the coming weeks would give them a huge boost in attack, meaning Leandro Trossard could move into the false nine role, giving them another option.
Arteta did claim a ‘few different players’ including Mikel Merino have been trialled in the striker role to help cope with their striker crisis meaning we could see something new unveiled this weekend.
Another key boost for Arteta is that Ben White is ready to start games again; the defender has missed 26 games this season with a knee injury but he returns just in time for the title run-in.
That gives Arteta options at the back, with Jurrien Timber and Myles Lewis-Skelley the starting full-backs in last weekend’s win over Leicester City but he will likely receive some minutes off the bench as he builds back up to full speed.
