Arsenal not seeking to rely on Manchester City being handed a hefty points deduction

MIKEL Arteta insists Arsenal must earn the right to win the Premier League title, rather than rely on any punishment for Manchester City – his former club and their nearest rivals.

City were this week charged by the Premier League with over 100 breaches of their financial rules. Possible sanctions include fines, points deductions or even relegation.

Pep Guardiola’s side visit the Emirates next week in the first of two pivotal clashes in the title race, with Arsenal currently five points clear with a game in hand.

Arteta would not comment on City’s case but he did tell his side to focus on what they can control.

‘We have to earn the right to win it, that’s for sure,’ he said.

‘Let’s focus on what we have to do and win enough football matches for that to happen.’

Arteta won two Premier League titles as Guardiola’s assistant. Now, though, rather than focus on City, Arteta insisted: ‘We have enough to look after our own garden.’

Arsenal face Brentford on Saturday, looking to avoid a third consecutive defeat in all competitions.

They were beaten by City in the FA Cup and then at Everton last weekend but Arteta has been impressed by his team’s reaction in recent days.

Straight away we sat together,’ he said. ‘It’s true that there are things we didn’t do like in other games and that’s why you lose football matches. But it’s always an opportunity to bounce back and show how much we want what we’re fighting for and do it tomorrow.’

He added: ‘I am an energy giver, I don’t like energy suckers, I just like to give and I like people who give energy in many different ways. Sometimes it’s with body language, tone of voice, hugging people, tone of voice and people looking for solutions, not excuses. So energy, a lot of energy.’

On whether the impending clash with City would affect his team on Saturday, he added: ‘For us it’s impossible to think about City when we have Brentford. The only possibility is to look at Brentford.’