Mikel Arteta is talking the talk when it comes to Arsenal’s chances of reeling in Liverpool in the Premier League title race.
The momentum swung considerably in the Reds’ favour last weekend when they scored twice in stoppage time to finally wear down Brentford’s insistence.
They then witnessed the Gunners relinquish a two-goal lead at home to Aston Villa to end up with only a draw, leaving the 42-year-old to bemoan the contrasting strength in depth of both squads.
Those results leave Arne Slot’s team six points clear with a game in hand prior to today’s fixtures, with the top two simultaneously in action as 3pm as we host Ipswich at Anfield and the north Londoners travel to face Wolves.
Arteta expecting Liverpool to endure a slump
Speaking in his pre-match press conference about Arsenal’s chances of knocking Liverpool off the summit, Arteta replied (via arsenal.com): “The margins are really, really small. You can see how things could’ve gone last weekend – the turning points are minimal and the gap certainly looks very different. We have to be at it, we have to do what is in our hands and there’s still a long, long way to go.”
He was then asked if he thinks the Reds will endure a ‘difficult spell’ in the second half of the season, answering: “They normally do, so we have to be there. That’s for sure.”
Arteta left praying for Liverpool decline which shows no sign of happening
So Liverpool ‘normally’ have a blip during the season then, Mikel?
That may have been the case in the run-in to the 2023/24 campaign, but the Reds are the one team who – more than any other – have shown they can consistently go stride-for-stride with a relentless Manchester City in a Premier League title race.
Maybe Slot’s side will endure a slump at some point between now and the end of May, but over the past few months there’s been little to suggest that’ll happen, certainly not to the extent that Arteta needs if his team are to reel us in at the top.
Only once this season have Liverpool gone without a win in consecutive matches, and that was for all of two games. By contrast, Arsenal have twice had sequences of only one victory in five matches, lacking the level of consistency that the Merseysiders have shown.
The Spaniard is no doubt hoping that the Reds will fall away like they did last April, but the fear for his team is that it might be too late by then.
This afternon should be a compelling day in the title race with the top two playing at the same time. If we extend the gap on the Gunners and Nottingham Forest to nine points with a game in hand, it’d feel like a long way back for both of them.
