'The belief has raised' - Mikel Arteta urges Arsenal to seize title chance as Saka returns

BELIEVE: Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta (Martin Rickett/PA)

Mikel Arteta said the race for the Premier League title starts now as he told his Arsenal players to seize the opportunity with “everything to play for”.

Arsenal have been usurped at the top of the table for the first time since the beginning of October after Manchester City saw off Arteta’s side at the Etihad Stadium last weekend and then beat Burnley on Wednesday.

It leaves the Gunners facing another do-or-die week in their bid to prevent the unthinkable by ending the season empty-handed.

They first face Newcastle at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday evening – one of five remaining matches in the league – before they head to Spain for the opening leg of their Champions League semi-final against Atletico Madrid.

And Arteta, who has received a major boost with Bukayo Saka in line to start against Newcastle after missing the past five games through injury, said: “The energy has raised, the belief has raised. The clarity of what we have to do, it cannot be better.

“Five games to go, four weeks. Two big competitions, and everything to play for. Tomorrow is game one. We are all in. Let’s go for it.

“If somebody would have told us at the beginning of the season this is where we would have been, we would have taken it. Win tomorrow, and then we will be much closer.

“You have to put it on the table, and you have to make it happen. We know what is at stake, how much we fought for this with our people, and now we have to do it on the pitch. Go and grab it.”

Erling Haaland scored the winner for City on Sunday (Martin Rickett/PA)

Arsenal would have moved 12 points clear at the top with a win against Bournemouth on April 12. But following their shock defeat to the Cherries, and ensuing loss against City, within the space of just 11 days they were removed at the top, albeit only on goals scored.

After Arsenal’s 2-1 defeat at the Etihad, Declan Rice told his team-mates “it’s not done” and, with City in FA Cup action this weekend, a victory for Arsenal would allow them to reclaim their position at the summit.

Saka’s return will come as a huge relief to an anxious Emirates crowd. The 24-year-old England international has been absent for Arsenal’s last five matches with an Achilles problem, and the Gunners have won just once across that period.

Boss Arteta added: “Bukayo’s had a tough period and we certainly missed him. We have given him some time because there was a moment that he was struggling to sustain the performances because he wasn’t comfortable at all.

“So, he has had the right treatment, the right space. He has had some time for himself, too, and now it’s the most important part of the season.

“It was a good moment for him as well to reflect and have some peace, because we’ve been constantly asking and demanding him, and it was a moment to say: ‘Okay, now when you feel ready let us know and we’ll go for it.’

“He was in great spirits today, the sun is shining, he’s back with the team, and he brings us a different energy.”