MIKEL ARTETA says Arsenal volition springiness up connected the Prem rubric “over my dormant body”.
And the Gunners brag admits this gruelling play of injuries and suspensions is 1 of his “proudest moments” astatine the nine – due to the fact that it could person near them successful MID-TABLE.
GettyPrem leaders Liverpool person 1 manus connected the rubric with an 11-point spread connected second-placed Arsenal aft Arteta’s men slumped to a 1-0 location decision to West Ham past weekend.
Barring an unprecedented illness from Arne Slot’s Reds with 12 games left, Arsenal are connected people for a THIRD successive twelvemonth arsenic the apical formation astir boys.
Yet up of tomorrow’s travel to Nottingham Forest, asked if the rubric contention is over, Arteta said: “Over my dormant body.
“You cannot power [Liverpool’s lead]. At the end, you’re going to person to acceptable a definite fig of points to triumph successful this league.
“And we’re going to person to deed that fig if we’re going to person immoderate accidental of doing that. But we’re surely going to proceed to try.
“If not, I’ll spell home. Mathematically, it’s possible. You are there, you person to play each game. Suddenly, 3 days ago, we could adjacent the spread and you are 1 and a fractional games away.
“It doesn’t matter. We person to proceed to go. The players know, particularly due to the fact that we’ve been successful the different presumption precocious and we cognize however rapidly things tin change.
“You person to beryllium determination and we each merit to proceed successful that fight.
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Getty“The happening is that erstwhile you are there, you privation much and you privation much and you privation more. And I’m not going to stop. Over my dormant body.
“We’ll enactment everything that we perchance tin to summation the probability of america winning and being amended than the hostile and hitting that show and those standards constantly, careless of what happens.
“The trouble is higher than 3 days ago. But if you privation to triumph the Premier League, you’re going to person to bash thing special.
“You’re going to person to triumph with the circumstances that we have. You’re astir apt going to person to bash thing that cipher other has done successful the past of the Premier League.”
Despite their drop-off successful the rubric race, Arteta insists helium remains arrogant of what his squad person achieved truthful acold this run – successful the Prem and successful Europe.
The Spaniard cited the information that from November 9, 2024 to February 16, 2025, Arsenal matched Liverpool with 10 wins and 5 draws, with an identical extremity quality of +23.
And that tally included injuries to the cardinal figures similar Ben White, Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Jesus, Kai Havertz and Gabriel Martinelli, arsenic good arsenic 2 reddish cards to Myles Lewis-Skelly, alongside the reds besides picked up by Declan Rice, Leandro Trossard and William Saliba earlier successful the season.
They are besides successful the Champions League past 16 – facing PSV adjacent week – having finished 3rd successful the marque caller league signifier format, conscionable 2 points down winners Liverpool.
Arteta continued: “It’s been highly accordant for the past 3 and a fractional months, considering everything that we’ve been through.
“So, if idiosyncratic tells you astatine the commencement of the season, by this time, you person played 5 times with a reddish paper implicit fractional an hr successful each of those games, and you person mislaid this magnitude of players, what’s the bet?
“You are successful the mediate of the table, astatine least, you know, and you are retired of the Champions League.
“That’s not the situation. So that tells you the resilience, the resources, the ambition that the squad has, each idiosyncratic has and that has been astir apt 1 of my proudest moments, successful that sense.”
Arsenal subordinate ratings vs West Ham
MYLES Lewis-Skelly’s 2nd reddish paper of 2025 appeared to enactment the last nail successful Arsenal’s rubric dreams and immoderate chances of them catching Liverpool.
The Gunners mislaid 1-0 to West Ham and failed to respond to Jarrod Bowen’s opener connected the brink of half-time.
The Hammers’ partition stood steadfast arsenic Arsenal registered conscionable 2 shots connected people before Lewis-Skelly’s last-man foul connected Mohammed Kudus was upgraded to a reddish aft ref Craig Pawson went to the monitor.
And Liverpool fans volition respire a suspiration of alleviation fixed their caller dip successful signifier arsenic Arsenal remain EIGHT points down Arne Slot’s men.
Here SunSport’s Charlie Wyett rates each Arsenal subordinate from the Emirates Stadium.
DAVID RAYA – 5
Declan Rice indicated to Raya that helium expected him to travel disconnected his enactment to woody with the transverse for the goal.
Maybe helium had a constituent but ultimately, Raya was fto down by his defenders.
JURRIEN TIMBER – 6
West Ham did not connection overmuch of a menace down their near truthful Timber had a reasonably comfy crippled portion helium did effort and get forward.
WILLIAM SALIBA – 6
Was ordered by Mikel Arteta to propulsion guardant much successful the 2nd fractional erstwhile Arsenal had possession and successful the closing stages, seemed to walk much of his clip successful West Ham’s area.
GABRIEL MAGALHAES – 5
Switched disconnected for the Bowen extremity but helium was not the lone one.
Also recovered the awesome Kudus pugnacious to grip erstwhile helium chopped inside.
Guilty of delivering an abysmal transverse precocious successful the crippled erstwhile Arsenal needed a spot of quality.
RICCARDO CALAFIORI – 4
A mediocre performance. Given the motion up of Lewis-Skelly but severely astatine responsibility for the opening extremity arsenic helium did not get adjacent capable to Aaron Wan-Bissaka who delivered the transverse to Bowen.
Was replaced aft helium kept losing the ball.
DECLAN RICE – 5
Not a time helium volition privation to retrieve against his erstwhile nine and helium got plentifulness of instrumentality from West Ham’s fans, arsenic you would expect.
Wasted 1 accidental earlier the interruption and failed to way Bowen for the goal. Substituted soon into the 2nd fractional which was a surprise.
THOMAS PARTEY – 5
A sluggish show from Partey whose passing was besides poor. Lucky not to beryllium replaced.
ETHAN NWANERI – 6
Had a fascinating conflict with West Ham teen Ollie Scaries, who was making his archetypal Premier League start.
Nwaneri was fantabulous astatine Leicester but had little occurrence against his chap youngster though inactive had immoderate agleam moments.
But, astatine slightest helium has a spot of a spark dissimilar immoderate of his much experienced team-mates. The 17-year-old sparked interest erstwhile helium came disconnected injured successful the last 10.
MARTIN ODEGAARD – 5
Not having his champion play astatine Arsenal.
This was the benignant of crippled Arsenal needed their skipper to present a infinitesimal of inspiration but helium failed to bash so.
LEANDRO TROSSARD – 5
Not a astonishment that helium was not utilized arsenic a mendacious 9 similar that disastrous experimentation against Leicester.
But helium had nary joyousness against the awesome Wan-Bissaka.
MIKEL MERINO – 5
Was the two-goal leader successful his archetypal ever quality arsenic a substitute striker astatine Leicester but had nary occurrence against West Ham’s well-drilled defence.
He looked mislaid retired determination arsenic the makeshift No 9.
SUBS:
Myles Lewis-Skelly (for Calafiori 56 minutes) – 4
Got a reddish paper – Arsenal’s 5th of the run – and though helium was a agelong mode retired could person nary complaints.
Oleksandr Zinchenko (for Rice 56 minutes) – 6
Raheem Sterling (for Nwaneri 81 minutes) – N/A
Ben White (for Saliba 87 minutes) – 5
Was handed his archetypal Premier League minutes since returning to the squad for past week’s Leicester win.
Subs not used: Neto, Tierney, Kiwior, Jorginho, Butler-Oyedeji.
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