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Mikel Arteta believes Arsenal must “embrace” the pressure as they continue their Premier League title charge with a trip to Anfield to face Liverpool on Sunday.
Arteta’s men head into the weekend with an eight-point lead over second-placed Manchester City, who have a game in hand on the Gunners and take on Southampton at St Mary’s Stadium on Saturday.
As they bid to hold off City and prevent Pep Guardiola’s men lifting a fifth Premier League title in six seasons, Arteta suggests it is important his team relish the situation they are in and use it as fuel to get them over the line.
“We do enjoy it, we have to enjoy it,” Arteta told reporters at his pre-match news conference. “We really need to embrace the moment and go for it.
“The team is full of enthusiasm and positivity, and we know that we have a big challenge but also a big opportunity to go to Anfield and do something we haven’t done for many years, and that is what is driving the team.”
Arteta’s men head to Anfield with a dismal record in recent years, with the Gunners not taking three points away from the famous old ground since the 2012-13 season, when goals from Lukas Podolski and Santi Cazorla earned a 2-0 victory with Arteta playing in midfield for Arsenal.
Arteta does not feel his team should fear going to Anfield, saying: “We’ve been in a few grounds that we haven’t won at in many years, and we’ve managed to do that. We’re capable of doing it.
“We’ll need to be better, certainly than in the second half of last year. First of all, it’s a different group coming from a different position. What we need to have is courage. On Sunday, we’ll try to be that team.”
Liverpool have failed to hit the heights of previous seasons, knocked out of all cup competitions and sitting eighth in the league as they desperately scrap to achieve European qualification.
When asked if he was surprised by the Reds’ disappointing campaign, Arteta replied: “It’s more admiration because it shows the difficulty of being at the top and transforming a football club.
“It shows how hard it is to maintain that. We’ve all had difficult moments, but what they’ve done at the club is remarkable.”
The Arsenal manager also confirmed the Gunners are set to be boosted by Bukayo Saka being fit to start after a bout of illness saw him drop to the bench for the 4-1 home thrashing of Leeds United last weekend.
