"Winning gives a big boost of energy", says Arsenal head coach

A win at the weekend has given Arsenal a boost, but facing Chelsea will be a tough challenge for the Premier League leaders, said Mikel Arteta. The Gunners will face their opponent in the postponed match in Week 29 of the 2023/24 English Premiere League at the Emirates Stadium on Tuesday(23rd April 2024). 

A win would take Arteta's side three points clear of Liverpool and four points clear of Manchester City, although the latter still have two games in hand. The pressure is increasing in the title race, but 42-year-old Arteta is confident his players will be ready because the club has worked hard to reach this moment. The Gunners defeated Wolverhampton on Saturday, returning to winning ways after losing to Aston Villa the previous weekend and crashing out of the Champions League after losing to Bayern Munich. In the press conference session before the match, Arteta remained wary of Chelsea even though their position was like earth and sky in the standings.

"Winning gives a big boost of energy, we have the London derby to face and everyone is ready for it," said Arteta. "I think [Chelsea] deserve to be much higher in the league when you look at what they have done, what they have produced in the games. "When you look at their squad, they have quality, much better than people expected. And we will have a tough game tomorrow."

The Blues, who are ninth in the standings, managed to hold off Arsenal in the meeting between the two teams last October, but dropping another point would be a loss for the Gunners, as they are only one point above Man City. "We are in a good position in the Premier League, We have been like this for nine months and we want to give our best," said Arteta. "We are determined to do what is in our hands, to try to lift the trophy." The Gunners looked exhausted in defeats to Aston Villa and Bayern Munich, but Arteta believes fatigue is primarily in the mind.

"There's a lot of research that proves that," he said. “If you can change the context and manipulate certain things, you can get something out of people that you might not expect. "There are a lot of things around him. I don't think we are at the stage where we need him, you can see that the team wants him. "There's so much at stake. We'll try to be as fresh as possible, but of course, I think we can handle it."